Sappho
Fragment 31
       translated by Josephine Balmer

It seems to me that man is equal to
  the gods,
that is, whoever sits opposite you
and, drawing nearer, savors, as 
  you speak,
the sweetness of your voice

and the thrill of your laugh, which
  have so stirred the heart
in my own breast, that whenever
  I catch
sight of you, even if for a moment,
then my voice deserts me

and my tongue is struck silent, a del-
  icate fire
suddenly races underneath my skin,
my eyes see nothing, my ears
  whistle like 
the whirling of a top

and sweat pours down me and a
  trembling creeps over
my whole body, I am greener than
  grass,
at such times I seem to be no more
  than
a step away from death;

but all can be endured, since even a 
  pauper...

[The last three lines are lost.]