I used to love poppyseeds,
especially baked into bagels and muffins
warm and doughy fresh from the oven.
My taste buds delighted at how 
those tiny black beauties,
added a subtle nutty crunch
to everything they were added to. 

When my daughter was pregnant,
she nicknamed her little nugget
Poppyseed, because he was so tiny,
yet so precious,
and the name Poppyseed 
never failed to bring 
a smile to this grandma’s face.

When my husband had surgery for cancer, 
the doctor told us cancer cells
are just like poppyseeds,
so tiny and so hard to detect,
they can be sprinkled anywhere
in your body,
hiding, lurking, malevolent,
so we just can’t say if
the cancer will be back.

I used to love poppy seeds,
now when I go to the bagel store, 
I order pumpernickel.