Doubt

Like an ugly serpent
It creeps up on you
Quietly
Entangling your mind in its tightening grip
Until it has encompassed all of you
How to break free?
Does doubt creep into your mind?  It does to mine occasionally.  I’m not sure why.  It can be a word, a question, a laugh that triggers it.  Suddenly, I am plagued with doubt.  When getting ready to ship a certain product, I worry:  will the stitches hold? is it really what the customer wants? is the color right?  Why?  Why would I doubt something that I have a lot of experience with?  Am I seeking reassurance?  
Is this rooted in my perfectionism?  Or perhaps my desire to please?
Do I plant a seed of doubt in my kids’ minds?  With a word or a laugh? 
Doubt really can be ugly and crippling.  Have you seen the movie “Doubt” with Meryl Streep?  I read the screenplay and really enjoyed the movie.  Not that it is “enjoyable.” And it’s not simply about the priest/abuse scandal.  It’s truly about the concept of doubt.  It’s fascinating, really.
Fortunately for me, doubt usually slips away as easily as it creeps in.  I’m sure for others it can circle in and out of their minds as an obsession.
Do you have doubts?  How do you deal with them?
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