A night sky

<Written in a plane, mostly with one hand.>

It’s a wonderful night in Australia, the air con is going, the ears are popping, the stars are shining and I’m cramped as hell.

That’s right. I’m in a plane. It’s even a big one, an airbus. But is it big enough for me? Well let’s check;

Arm rest: firmly in thigh

Knees: firmly in seat

Shoulders: pushed forward by neck rest

Arms: squashed by wall and nice guy next to me (also on his laptop)

Laptop: unable to sit flat

Movie: Independence Day (the first one)

Now I am aware that some of my readers will have experienced some or all of these symptoms, but there will only be a select few who truly appreciate my pain at the moment.

There is something very levelling about this sort of environment. Sitting here I can see clear above everyone else in the cabin, as far as the bulkhead in front of me. This is similar to experiences I often have at the mall. You see, dear reader, there is a kind of immunity that tall people build up. When you spend your days, nights and weekends with the same people, usually notably shorter people, you become used to their shortcomings. It’s only when you go somewhere like a mall or sit on a plane that you realise just quite how tall you are.

You start to notice the sea of hair that sits just below your nose, and observe the strange human prediction to not look up; and as you walk past those of lesser stature, you wonder what life in their world must be like. A world in which you can have those clothes that look cool without having to take a picture and have them custom made, a world where you can go and buy a suit off the rack and sit in a plane chair without feeling like an accordion.

But this is also a world in which indecision rules, where you don’t automatically know where to stand in a class photo. Where you need to use a chair or even a ladder to change a simple lightbulb.

The other world, is one where you were always tall enough to ride on the fun looking ride at the festival and where you can spot your family in a crowd because they too stand head and shoulders above everyone else. This is a world where giants live. A world where three year olds look up at you in awe and reverently if they too might be allowed to touch the sky and ask precisely how tall you really are. This is my world.

Sadly this is also the world of minuscule aeroplane seats, and my one hand is getting a cramp.