If you ask Michael Murphey what he's most excited about starting kindergarten, he'll reply "everything."
"He's probably going to be the smartest kid in his class, wouldn't you say," Brittany Denison asked her son.
"Yeah," Murphey replied.
Murphey was born with a rare condition called Treacher Collins syndrome.
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"We knew it right when he was born," Denison said. "So all the bones in the lower half of his face are just smaller."
Denison said other than that, Murphey is like every other boy. He loves superheroes, puzzles and playing baseball. Captain America is his favorite.
The family moved to Midlothian last year so Murphey could grow up in a smaller town where everyone knew him. To help the transition to kindergarten, Denison wrote a heartfelt Facebook post.
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"Dear God, please make them be nice to him," the post started. "I'm so excited yet scared for Michael... I have a huge ask of all our local parents."
Denison asked them to talk to their children about not staring or whispering.
"Let them know that if they are going to stare, it's polite to also say, 'Hi'."
The response to Denison's post was overwhelming.
"I know that it's been shared so many times," Denison said. "Which is really encouraging."
Murphey has the same condition as the main character in the movie "Wonder." He said when people stare, it makes him feel shy.
"When you look at someone that looks different than you, your gut response is to think that they're different. When you actually open the door and get to know who they are, you have more in common than you think," Denison said through tears. "I think he can teach them that he is so much more than what he looks like."
Murphey started kindergarten on Monday.
