Consider that for many of us, our phones are now quite literally painful to use one-handed, and we have no alternatives - for devices that most of us use for at least an hour or two a day and is often our primary tech device when not actually at a desk.
My Pixel 3 at the time I bought it was one of the smallest decent quality phones that wasn't iOS, and even after a year and a half I still notice how much my hand has to contort for basic usage.
It's a computing device I use for at least a couple hours every day, and which I never leave the house without. Once my current phone breaks I'd just like to buy a new one I can keep in my pants pocket :)
But maybe I'm wrong, and you have your reasons.
I guess part of it is our impotence in the face of a multibillion-dollar ecosystem of mass-produced products, and the realization that we're (apparently) irrelevant (I share your distaste for large phones).
Anyway, I too hope smaller phones become commonplace again.