The poem, The End of the Curse, recounts the dramatic events of 2016 World Series Game 7 in which the Chicago Cubs defeated the Cleveland Indians in extra innings to end their long championship drought. It is written in the style of the famous baseball poem, Casey at the Bat, which was penned in 1888 by Ernest Thayer. That poem was used as a model because (1) the rhythm of the poem lends itself well to dramatic storytelling, (2) it focused on the drama of a single game, (3) the emotions of the spectators played a central role in the poem, and (4) it was written in the era in which the Cubs had last won a World Series.

     Like the classic poem, this one pays a fair amount of attention to the emotions of the spectators and viewers who watched the events unfold. Because of the 108-year championship drought in which the Cubs were never able to win a World Series, the game carried tremendous emotional significance for Cubs fans. This poem explores the internal psychological struggles of such fans as their emotions alternated among confidence, fear, hope, despair, and jubilation . . . 

“Although a single out would give the Cubs the win,

Fans had been trained for a lifetime to have fear and doubt within.

As they steeled themselves for the inevitable blow,

They felt a strange connection to loved ones long ago.”

     But in addition to covering the highlights of the game, as well as the emotions of the fans, the poem also takes a fanciful look at the curse itself . . . 

"Unbeknownst to mortals, the curse was having doubts of its own.

It had this strange sensation that it was no longer alone.

Nagging at it was the miraculous rain before Inning 10.

Except for the rain delay, the Cubs would have died again."

     In The End of the Curse, the story of Game 7 is told from the point of view of Cubs fans. Like the classic baseball poem, this one is focused entirely on the “home” team and its players, with no mention of players on the opposing team. This accentuates the importance of the point of view, the emotions, and the frustrations of Cubs fans who, for so many years, had to “wait till next year.”