The Ballad of Louis Creed (Inspired by Stephen King)

We moved to Maine for a better life,

Myself, my kids, our cat, and my wife.

If I’d known then what I now know,

We would have stayed in Chicago.

.

I worked my days at the university

While Rachel, Gage, and Ellie

Began to make our house a home.

Church, the cat, he liked to roam.

.

Our house sits on a thoroughfare,

With semi-trucks racing here and there.

The town is quaint and nice enough,

Though New Englanders can be quite gruff.

.

My wife and kids were all away,

On that mundane, yet tragic day,

When Church met up with a semi-truck,

And his ninth life ran out of luck.

.

Young Ellie and Gage would not understand,

But our neighbor Jud spoke of sacred land,

Saying that a use might be found

For the ancient earth of the burial ground.

.

He said the place was far yet near,

But if I loved my Ellie dear,

I could take Church up the stair of logs,

Beyond the buried cats and dogs.

.

I carried Church into that deep, dark wood,

Not realizing then how I would,

Come to rue this task undertaken.

My whole damn plan was godforsaken.

.

I’d hoped to spare my children tears,

At least, I thought, for a few more years.

Sweet Church came back, but he was changed,

What made him him had been exchanged.

.

The now stinking cat was quick to claw,

I’d wished upon a monkey’s paw.

Our beloved pet had gone away,

And something foul was here to stay.

.

I thought that things could not get worse,

But I must be under some dreadful curse.

We had a picnic in the yard,

The last good hours, before things got hard.

.

Gage was running with his kite,

Through the grass and spring sunlight.

I saw the truck, but it was too late,

On the road Gage met his fate.

.

I find myself a broken man,

But I have hatched another plan.

I dug Gage up, now he’s with me,

As I carry him toward the Pet Semetary.