I live in a world not meant for someone my size.

At 5-feet tall on a good day, I’m constantly on my tip toes, unable to reach the top shelf and looking up to see people’s faces. I’m surprised I don’t have neck problems.

In the hallways I stare at the backs of my peers, closely following someone bigger than me in order to maneuver through. I worry someone three times my size will eat me in one gulp.

In the car, I am forever stuck sitting in the middle back seat because “I’m the only one small enough to fit there.” It is a rare and special occasion when my feet touch the floor when I sit on a chair. But I’ve gotten used to it.

My height is most bothersome when I am in public. My age is constantly questioned by salespeople and strangers, who don’t take me seriously just because I don’t look like a senior in high school.

Additionally, I can recall many times being at movie theaters or plays and Hugey McTallguy decides to sit right in front of me, completely blocking my view.

Obviously I have no control over my height. My mom is barely 5-foot-1, so my genes don’t leave me with much to work with.

Because I stopped growing in eighth grade, there’s no point in wallowing in the fact that I am the size of an average sixth grader.

While I will never reach my dream height of 5-foot-4, my friends point out how lucky I am to be so small. They tease me that “life is so hard when you’re a size 0.” It’s only because if I wore a size 6, I would be tripping over the lengths of fabric underneath me.

With this, being my size has its perks. I can buy clothes and shoes in the kids’ section at stores, which are almost half the price of normal clothes.

I can fit and nuzzle up into almost any place, which also makes me excellent at hide-and-seek. And I never have to worry about not having enough leg room.

Inevitably, everyone has something that makes them different from others, whether it be height, skin color or freckles. You may or may not like it, however, it is what makes you unique from every other human and should be celebrated.

Although living a life meant for the average height has its woes, it has to be someone’s job to make 12-year olds feel good about themselves.