A QUICK STORY
I (along with the rest of the family) have been down with the flu for the last couple of days, and we're still a bit weak from it...but getting better...so today I'll just tell a quick story, in two parts:

First:  teaching in the spring semester began again for me recently; we always begin again right after the Martin Luther King holiday.  Once again, I did what I always do on day 1 of class---tell them about my Moebius Syndrome.  It's always received well, and this time was no different for all 3 of my classes.  I think one thing that helps it go so smoothly is that I try to use humor in describing Moebius.  I try not to make it so serious and heavy.  It helps to have a little fun with it.  So for example, I always mention that we with Moebius often don't have full lip closure.  There are certain sounds we're going to have difficulty making, especially the "m" and the "b" sound.  But...naturally...our condition is called "Moebius" Syndrome..."Moebius" being a very difficult word for us to say.  Thanks a lot, syndrome-namers!!

That always gets a laugh.  We with Moebius have great senses of humor.  It's good for people to know that.

And then this weekend, because I could tell I was coming down with something, and we thought it would be good to see a doctor and see if I could get some meds to attack it early, I went to an urgent care facility.  They checked me out very well; in giving my medical history, naturally I described my Moebius Syndrome to the doctor and to the nurse practitioner.  Unsurprisingly, they had never heard of Moebius.  No shame there.  Many have not.  But what pleased me is that they were very interested in it and wanted to know more.  And then the next day, when my wife had to go to the same facility and see if SHE had the flu too, obviously they had discussed it among themselves and knew more about it.  That's the thing--many people, when you take the time to describe Moebius to them, are interested in it, want to know more, and react positively to it.  I guess you would expect that when dealing with medical professionals...but I think ordinary people can have a good reaction, too.

So anyway, that's my Moebius Syndrome story for today. :+)