This myth is always guaranteed to make me sniffle every time I read a good version of it. It's one of the saddest stories in the world: man loses dearly beloved wife, goes to hell to get her back, and, finally, just when he's just of the verge of escaping with her he has a moment of weakness and looks back, just for one second, and loses her forever. After this he wanders around forlorn and is torn apart by some worshippers of Bacchus because he won't ever love women again - and his head, torn from his body, still sings of Eurydice.

Aieee! That's all Greek myth in that one story: there's nothing safe in this world and just when you are almost there (wherever there is), you lose everything. And then some.

I must be in a particularly maudlin mood today because I'm posting a translation of a portion of (IMO) one of the best versions of the story, Virgil's in the Georgics. I like this one because it actually give Eurydice some voice - the bit I'm posting is mainly her speaking to Orpheus just before she vanishes back into the underworld. It kills me because not only does she die again, they don't get to even say a last farewell to each other. I don't pretend the translation is very good or even terribly accurate, but I hope it gets the power of Virgil across a little bit.

( Cut for those what don't like depressing poetry )