Page 52 - Yellow Feather Book 2

must be right. “Why doesn’t he come to me in the day? Why doesn’t he allow me to see him? What is his secret? Why hasn’t he ever told me about his life?” These thoughts were puzzling Psyche for many days long. “He must be hiding something horrible and that is why he does not want to be seen in the daylight. I must find out. Tonight, when he falls to a deep sleep, I will light a candle to see him. If he is a snake, I will kill him; otherwise, I will turn the candle off and go happily to sleep”. She had made her decision, forgetting all about her husband’s warning.
Indeed, that night, when her husband fell asleep peacefully, she took courage and lit the candle. Walking on her toes she approached the bed and she felt a deep relief. The light did not show a monster but the most beautiful of men. Ashamed by her madness and her little confidence, Psyche fell down on her knees and thanked the gods for this happiness. But while she was leaning on him, a drop of wax fell from the candle and burned the back of that handsome, young man. He woke up in pain and saw the light. He looked straight into Psyche’s eyes and saw her distrust; he left their bedroom without uttering a single word. Psyche immediately ran after her husband. It was dark and she could not see him, but could hear his heartbroken voice: “Love cannot live without trust”. Those were his last words before flying away into the dark sky. “The god of love!” she thought. “He was my husband and I did not trust him.” She cried and cried for days, punishing herself for her mistake until she finally realized what she had to do. She resolved to win back his love. She would do whatever she had to, endure any hardship, but she would gain him back. She would look everywhere for him and she would prove her love.
Without knowing what else to do, she went to the temple of Venus and prayed to the goddess. She asked Venus to speak to her son and persuade him to take her back. Venus had not, of course, overcome her jealousy for Psyche and still wanted her revenge. She told the young girl that she needed to be completely sure that she was the appropriate wife for her son. Therefore, Psyche should accomplish three tasks to prove her skills. If she failed in even one of these tasks, Cupid would be lost forever.
Psyche agreed and Venus led her to a hill. There the goddess showed her a dune of different small seeds –wheat, poppies, millets and many others. “I want you to separate these seeds by this afternoon. If you do not, I will never let you see Cupid again” said Venus and left. How could she do that? How could she sort all these tiny seeds? This was a cruel task that filled her eyes with tears. That moment, a group of ants were passing by and saw her in despair. “Come, feel mercy for this poor girl and
The Story of Cupid and Psyche 51 by Apulieus