Euripides, An Athenian

He grew old between the burning of Troy

and the quarries of Sicily.

He liked the caves on the beach and the sea’s drawings.

He saw the veins of people

as a net in which the gods catch us, like animals;

he tried to cut through it.

He was surly, his friends were few;

the time came, and the dogs tore him to shreds.

George Seferis
Translated by Pavlos Andronikos