When you're 12 and stuck in the sweltering city of Atlanta during the summer, there's only so much fun to be had. So what do you ultimately do? The answer: a trip to Six Flags over Georgia.  Looking back on my trips to Six Flags, it finally hits me: I hate amusement parks.
 
After standing in line for an ungodly amount of time, having a stroller rolled across my feet, and making idle conversation with a 3-year-old ("But why?"), I finally made it to the ticket-seller booth. But apparently, having a season pass means nothing.
 
"Are you sure this is you?" I remember the ticket lady asking me. Oh of course it's not me! There's just someone in the world that looks exactly like me. 
 
After finally getting into what by now seemed an elusive goal, I realized Six Flags was my very worst nightmare. With a sea of hills, seemingly endless lines and overpriced drinks, Six Flags became to me some sort of weird torture that only I was forced to endure.
 
However, I shook off my trepidation and went to the nearest ride I could find, the Ninja. After waiting in line for an absurd 30 minutes I met my most formidable enemy: the measuring stick. After waiting in line for all that time I am denied entrance to the Ninja. And all because I am, quote, "too short".
 
For a good part of my life this was to be the extent of my amusement park days. Was I doomed to spend the rest of my life as a bag holder, constantly being haunted by the all mighty measuring stick?
 
Thankfully, I grew. However, in the eyes of many, I am still short.
 
Being not quite tall but not quite a little person either puts me in a sort of strange limbo. I'm tall enough to be 'normal' but short enough for tall people to call me 'little'.
 
Surprisingly, there are some good points to being 'vertically challenged'.  I never bump my head on doors and trees never hit me in the face. Perhaps my height is a small price to pay for these conveniences.
 
Regardless of whether the pros outweigh the cons, on the eve of my 18th birthday, I've realized something: this is the end of the growing road for me. I'm short and I'm stuck; I might as well get used to it.
 
However, that won't stop me from replying to the next tall person who calls me that dreaded five-letter word that "I'm NOT short!"