What is in a height?

What is in a name? A rose by any other name would smell as sweet said Shakespeare. But what about the height of a human being? It does make a difference in the looks of a person. Some are tall, some are short, and some are medium height. I always had a complex about my height which is only 5` 4.5”  Over a period of time, I realized that your height doesn`t matter when it comes to being an achiever. Many great men in history were short. I understand Napolean was a short guy. Lal Bahadur Shastri the late second Prime Minister of India was short in stature.

Closer home my good friend and the legendary adman Sam Balsara is short- a bundle of energy envied by all. The respect he commands in the advertising industry is to be seen to be believed. Both my younger brothers are taller than me. I think I have taken after my father who was the shortest among five of his elder brothers. However, I am happy that my son at almost 6ft has taken after his uncles.
There are many advantages of being a short person. When you are traveling in a train you can comfortably stretch your legs on any berth while you can see the tall guys struggling to keep their feet within the length of the berth. They also find it tough to keep their legs in position in an economy-class seat in an aircraft. Whereas short people can sit comfortably. Tall people find it tough to get in and out of small cars.

I remember an episode involving my first car in life -the cute little Morris Minor.  The year 1970.I was driving the car with my friend Giri who was 6`.3” and bulky. The car suddenly stalled & stopped. Fortunately, the car was closer to the kerb. Giri decided to help me and asked me to step out. With great difficulty, he got into the car and managed to start the car. When he tried to get out he got stuck between the steering wheel and the seat. I was both shocked and amused. I could see the panic in his eyes. After a lot of maneuvering, he got out of the car. Needless to say that he never traveled with me in my MM ever again!

Googling for information on this topic I found the following interesting information. According to a 2014 New York University study the marriage of men below 5`.6’” will be more Stable. They are 32 percent less likely to divorce than average-height guys, They will live longer. and have a lower risk of getting cancer.

While I don`t agree with the above in the Indian context I was intrigued by the third finding which says that short people have more sex. I have heard before that bald people always have sex on their mind. Does it mean that bald people who are also short have more sex?

While height does not matter in becoming a successful human being, it does matter in many situations!