I have, in my column, a little literary recommendation. Why not, from time to time? Reading the news earlier this week, I stumbled upon the phrase “customer of size.” At first I thought it was a joke: “person of color,” “customer of size.” But, no, it’s real: a term for an airline passenger who is, or may be, too fat to fly (in one seat, that is).

Anyway, I discovered, in some web surfing, a short story — a really lovely, poignant, finely wrought thing called “Customer of Size” by Mary Jones (here). A reader now writes, “‘Customer of Size’ is a great expression of love and compassion.” I agree. “It reminded me of the first time I read O. Henry’s work.”

But our letter-writer had “O’Henry,” rather than “O. Henry” — a perfectly understandable mistake. And it gave me an NFL memory: For a while, when I was a kid, I thought the Pittsburgh running back was “Frank O’Harris.” At some point, I saw his name written, to discover it was “Franco Harris.”

I know this is true of many others as well, for they have written me to tell me so, when I’ve discussed the “O’Harris” business.

Anyway, enough of this wordplay: Try “Customer of Size.” It’s short and it’s superb.