§30.1Ὤιαι τῶ χαλεπῶ καἰνομόρω τῶδε νοσήματος·
Alas for this harsh and ill-fated disease!
§30.2τετορταῖος ἔχει, παιδὸς ἔρως, μῆνά με δεύτερον,
Love for a boy holds me, like a quartan fever, for a second month.
§30.3μᾶκος μὲν μετρίω γʼ, ἀλλʼ ὁπόσον τῶ πέδα περρέχε §30.4τᾶς γᾶς τοῦτο χάρις· ταῖς δὲ παραύαις γλυκὺ μειδίαι.
He is indeed of moderate height, but whatever portion of the earth he walks upon is full of grace; and on his cheeks he smiles sweetly.
§30.5καὶ νῦν μὲν τὸ κακὸν ταῖς μὲν ἔχει, ταῖσι δέ μʼ οὐκέτι, §30.6τάχα δʼ οὐδʼ ὅσον ὕπνω’πιτύχην ἔσσετʼ ἐρωία·
And now indeed this evil holds me at one time, and at another holds me no longer, but soon there will not be even as much respite as to get some sleep.
§30.7ἐχθὲς γὰρ παριὼν ἔδρακε λέπτʼ ἄμμε διʼ ὀφρύγων §30.8αἰδεσθεὶς ποτίδην ἀντίος, ἠρεύθετο δὲ χρόα.
For yesterday, as he passed by, he looked at me askance from under his brows, feeling ashamed to look me in the face, and he blushed.
§30.9ἔμεθεν δὲ πλέον τᾶς κραδίας ὥʼ ρος ἐδράξατο, §30.10εἰς οἶκον δʼ ἀπέβαν ἕλκος ἔχων καὶ τὸ κέαρ δακών.
And Love seized my heart even more firmly than before, and I went back home bearing a wound and biting my heart.
And calling upon my own soul, I spoke many things to it: "Why indeed do you do these things?
ἀλοσύνας τί ἔσχατον ἔσσεται;
What will be the end of this folly?
§30.13λεύκας οὐκετʼ ἴσησθʼ ὅττι φορῇς ἐν κροτάφοις τρίχας;
Do you no longer know that you wear white hairs on your temples?
§30.14ὧρά τοι φρονέειν μὴ οὔτι νέος τὰν ἰδέαν πέλῃ.
It is time for you to be wise, seeing that you are by no means young in appearance.
§30.15πάντʼ ἔρδης ἅπερ οἱ τῶν ἐτέων ἄρτι γεγευμένοι.
You do everything that those who have just tasted the years of youth do.
§30.16καὶ μὰν ἄλλο δε λάθει· τόδʼ ἄρʼ ἦς λώιον, ἔμμεναι §30.17ξέννον τῶν χαλεπῶν παιδὸς ἐράννω παράπαν πόθων
And indeed another thing escapes you: this surely would be better, to remain entirely a stranger to the harsh desires for a lovely boy.
§30.18τῷ μὲν γὰρ βίος ἕρπει προγόνοις ἶσʼ ἐλάφω θοᾶς, §30.19χαλάσει δʼ ἑτέρᾳ ποντοπόρην αὔριον ἄρμενα.
For to him, life glides away like a swift fawn's, and tomorrow he will loosen his sails to voyage on another sea.
§30.20οὐδʼ αὐτῷ γλυκερᾶς ἄνθεμον ἅβας πεδʼ ὐμαλίκων §30.21μένει· τῷ δʼ ὁ πόθος καὶ τὸν ἔσω μυελὸν ἐσθίει §30.22ὀμμιμνασκομένῳ· πολλὰ δʼ ὄρη νυκτὸς ἐνύπνια, §30.23παύσασθαι δʼ ἐνιαυτὸς χαλεπᾶς οὐκ ἰκανὸς νόσω. §30.24ταῦτα χἅτερα πολλὰ προτʼ ἐμὸν θυμὸν ἐμεμψάμαν.
Not even for him does the flower of sweet youth remain among his peers; but to the lover, desire eats even the very marrow within him as he remembers; and he sees many dreams by night, and a year is not sufficient to give release from this harsh disease." These things and many others I reproached my soul with.
§30.25ὁ δὲ τοῦτʼ ἔφατʼ· ὄττις δοκίμοι τὸν δολομάχανον §30.26νικάσειν Ἔρον, οὗτος δοκίμοι τοὶς ὑπὲρ ἄμμεων §30.27εὑρεῖν βραϊδίως ἀστέρας ὁπποσσάκιν ἐννέα.
But it replied to me: "Whoever thinks he can conquer guileful Love, he thinks he can easily count the stars above us, nine times over.
§30.28καὶ νῦν, εἴτʼ ἐθέλω, χρή με μακρὸν σχόντα τὸν ἄμφενα §30.29ἕλκειν τὸν ζυγόν, εἴτʼ οὐκ ἐθέλω· ταῦτα γὰρ ὦγαθὲ §30.30βούλεται θέος, ὃς καὶ Διὸς ἔσφαλε μέγαν νόον §30.31καὔτας Κυπρογενήας·
And now, whether I want to or not, I must stretch out my neck and drag the yoke; for, my good friend, these things are the will of the god who beguiled even the great mind of Zeus and of the Cyprian goddess herself.
ἔμε μάν, φύλλον ἐπάμερον, §30.32σμίκρας δεύμενον αὔρας ὀνέμων ᾇ κε θέλῃ φόρη.
As for me indeed, a leaf of a day, that needs but a tiny breeze, he carries me off wherever the winds will."