Hi Brandon,
Hopeless High Rise
Some of my friends have been criticizing me because of my crush. He is the shortest boy in my grade and I’m one of the tallest. When we stand next to each other it’s kind of like a high-rise building next to a one-story ranch house, like the one I live in. My friends think that we would look ridiculous together, especially at things like school dances. I’m pretty sure he likes me too, but I don’t know. Should I give up on my crush because we’re just too different?
Hey High Rise,
It’s a bummer that your friends are giving you grief about your crush. Middle school is tough enough without having to feel insecure about something that nobody can control. I think if this guy is nice and you like him, that’s all that matters!
Okay, food example time (man, I’m hungry right now—I could even go for some Queasy Cheesy pizza and that stuff almost always leaves people with a stomach ache). One time, my grandpa pulled everything out of the refrigerator (I’m talking all the way down to the mustard) and told me to try combining things I’d never had before. Yeah, I know that sounds weird, but it was a slow Friday night, okay? 😋
I tried tuna with peanut butter (thumbs WAY down), pickles with mayo (just plain bizarre), pudding on meatloaf (not great), and salad with applesauce in it (not bad!). Finally, I discovered something miraculous. . .
Cold pizza and spaghetti sandwiches!!! Hey, don’t knock it until you’ve try it!
What I’m getting at is, it doesn’t matter if two things don’t look like they go together, as long as they taste great to YOU. If you like this boy, I’m guessing you have lots in common—so start thinking about what you have in common instead of focusing on the one thing that you don’t (height).
Sure, some guys can feel a little defensive if the girl they like is taller than them. And middle school is a place where people tend to criticize physical features. But like my grandpa says, it’s not the outside that matters—that’s just a shell. It’s the inside that counts!
Plenty of girls like shorter guys. There are lots of examples of couples that work with a big height difference. I’m not really up on celebrity stuff, so I asked Nikki and she gave me the following deets to pass along to you:
- The singer Keith Urban is shorter than his wife, actress Nicole Kidman. (Especially when she wears high heels—Nikki told me to add that.)
- Singer Pharrell Williams (Nikki loves his song, “Happy”) is shorter than his wife, Helen Lasichanh.
- Carla Bruni, the wife of former French president Nicolas Sarkozy, is WAY taller than him.
How the heck does Nikki know all that??? I swear, girls have the craziest collection of knowledge.
So, okay, I’ll leave you with two basic pieces of advice:
- Tell your friends to please stop bugging you because it’s really rude, both to you and your crush.
- Don’t let physical differences get in the way of your heart!
Have you ever felt like your crush wouldn’t like you because you’re taller, shorter, or have any other kind of physical differences? What did you do about it? Tell us in the comments.
