“This is the first time in my life that I’ve ever felt small, and I like it.”
Robert Wadlow, “The Tallest Man in History” – The History Guy
The star of the “Where’s Waldo” series of books is a man in an iconic red-and-white striped shirt, round glasses, and a pom-pom hat trying to hide. Illustrated by Martin Handford, some spreads have thousands of similarly striped figures designed to challenge readers to find him in a crowd.
By the time Robert Wadlow started kindergarten in 1923 , he was already 5′ 4″ tall–the height of a 15 year-old boy. By the time he graduated from high school, he was 8′ 3″ tall and wore a size 37AA shoe.
Wadlow continued to grow until his death at age 22, reaching 8′ 11″ and earning the title of the World’s Tallest Man by Guinness World Records. A life-size statue and replica chair can be found in his hometown at 2810 College Avenue in Alton, Illinois.
While Waldo is drawn to be lost in a crowd, Wadlow didn’t have that option. Robert stood out wherever he went, except once among a grove of sequoia trees on a visit to California–see quote above.
While standing next to the statue, I put something into perspective. It’s easy to want things that are not guaranteed. At 5′ 2″ tall (or short), I often wished I had grown just a few inches more. Wadlow died at 22; I’m well into my 50’s. I can ride a motorcycle wearing normal-sized clothes and a size 10 women’s (men’s size 8.5) shoe.
On this day, it was especially nice to fit into a small crowd of COVID-19 vaccinated friends after 13 months apart and not feel hidden like Waldo or “too seen” like Wadlow.
Who can wish for anything more than that?
By Cris
Heartland Chapter of Women On Wheels® 
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