I’m trying to change the definition of what it means to be filter free.
Allow me to start by telling you what a filter free mom is not.
A filter free Mom is not harsh. A filter free mom does not judge. A filter free mom doesn’t say whatever she wants to without any regard for others. She does not have an “I don’t care what you think” attitude.
So what is a filter free mom, you ask?
A filter free mom is tired of the mom culture that has been born out of the Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest era that often goes hand in hand with parenting these days.
She sees other moms posting on social media, sharing overly edited and filtered snippets of a perceived perfect life. Her messy living room, sink full of dishes, kids who won’t smile for a photo, or the pb&j she served for dinner makes her feel inadequate compared to the other moms on her friend list or her favorite Instagrammer.
It comes time to plan a birthday party and Pinterest is showing her that it must be the trendiest theme, a party where even the food has names. She spends a fortune and loses precious hours of sleep to craft the perfect, most Instagram worthy production. She finds herself spending all her time planning and preparing and she forgets to stop and enjoy the reason for celebrating. One thing goes wrong and she feels as though she isn’t doing a good enough job. She feels as though she isn’t as good a mom as the ones who nailed the Pinterest perfect parties.
She remembers back to the birthdays of her childhood. A couple of balloons, a homemade sheet cake served in the pan and a few friends playing. She remembers how happy it made her. She remembers a present mom, putting time and energy into her and not into the Internet. She remembers a humble, simple home and she longs for that simple life.
She fights back by sharing the real stuff. She believes that sharing truth, sharing the stories of hardship alongside stories of success builds bridges of connection and community. She believes her truth could be an encouragement to another mom who’s stuck in the web of social media and inadequacy. Her truth empowers another mom to share what’s real. Soon enough moms begin to feel comfortable with where they are in life and not as though they need more or aren’t good enough.
She remembers to stop and count her blessings and she is thankful. She isn’t afraid to let others see life as it is and vows to not let social media mom culture make her feel anything less than what she is; a daughter of God and when He created her, He made no mistakes. 💞
