The Canteloupe Pope

Pass the wine, people
Then pass the meat
From paupers to Popes
We all have to eat.

But sometimes food
Can be a noose
Was such the case
for Pope Paul Deuce?



He is known
As the Canteloupe Pope
But let us hope
The fruit did not
Contain dope.

Pure poetry here
Is not my intention
It is time for prose
With factual intervention:


Here was another pope famous for his chef, Bartolomeo Platina,
whose cookbook was the first ever printed on a press.
Published in 1470, it included an unfortunately prophetic section
warning of the dire consequences of eating melon on a full stomach,
noting that they were best as an appetizer.
Pope Paul II died from eating "two good big melons,"
poisoned or otherwise , the next year.

THE POPE PAUL II PARAGRAPH IS ON THE TENTH PLATE OF THE HYPERLINK.