Are you familiar with photo filters? If you’re on social media at all, you’ve definitely seen them. Filters can change the color shades of a photo. They can add sparkles and stars or even change our complexions. Some of them put masks on the subjects of the photos. A filter can truly change the tone and impression of a picture.

Annoying antics happen all the time in our house. Liquids are more often out of the cup instead of in it. Crayons are so much more fun to use on walls and floors and furniture than on paper. Voices just happen to get louder when baby siblings are napping. And the best toys are plungers in toilet bowls and unrolling toilet paper. It’s all the stuff that writes up a fun story but is just so frustrating for a busy mama trying to run a smooth household. I sure wish I could say that I just smiled and laughed each time those things happen. I probably do the first or second time something happens but come the fifth or sixth occurrence my fuse is all too short.

I wonder what would happen if I changed my filter. Instead of letting the moment dictate my response to life perhaps I could ask myself:

• Will I remember this incident when he is 18?
• If I do remember it, will I still find it frustrating or will I laugh about it instead?
• (And on those particularly trying days) When I am in heaven and worshiping before God’s throne, will I remember this incident?
• If I do remember it (and I doubt I will), will it matter at all?

Just as a filter doesn’t alter the chemistry of the photo itself, neither will my questions change the frustrating situations that pop up each day. But photo filters can adjust the perspective of the photo and the emotions it generates. I think the right filter on life can make all the difference in the world when it comes to responding to life in a lighter fashion. I’ll need to give it a try.