Souling #206 From Masks to Sheaths -A Shift in Understanding

From Masks to Sheaths — A Shift in Understanding

For a long time, I misunderstood what it meant to “wear a mask.” The phrase always felt loaded implying deception, inauthenticity, or performing someone I’m not. But what I’ve come to realize through my own Souling journey is that what I and so many others have worn are not masks of falseness, but protective sheaths.

These sheaths weren’t about hiding who I am… they were about preserving what is sacred. About guarding the soft, tender truths that hadn’t yet felt safe to be seen. They were woven from experiences…some painful, some wise, some that taught me it wasn’t always safe to lead with my heart. So I adapted. We all do.

But here’s the reframe that changed everything for me:
Wearing a protective sheath doesn’t mean you’re disconnected from your truth. It means your truth has been honored—quietly, inwardly—until it feels safe to unfold again.

In my own peeling back, I’ve learned to hold those sheaths with reverence instead of shame. They weren’t signs that I was being fake. They were signals that my nervous system was doing its job protecting what mattered most.

So if you find yourself still holding parts of you close to the chest, I want to say this:
That doesn’t make you dishonest. That makes you discerning.

And when the time is right, when the body says, now, you’ll let more of yourself breathe into the light. Not because someone forced you to remove your armor, but because you remembered… you’re safe enough to soften.

Souling Softly in Truth,

Mindy