4/22/1517

Hello, My name is Amoxtli, and I am an Aztec teenager. Today is my 14th birthday, so my father, who is a Pochteca and usually off traveling, took me to a market to celebrate. I have been to these markets many times over the course of my life, but today was different. Today I got to pick out something to buy for myself. There were so many interesting things to choose from, but I managed to make a decision. My father traded some of the exotic spices he has collected on his travels for a the book I am writing in now. I hope to document my life here, so I can look back on these memories when I am older. 

6/7/1517

Today was an exciting day. I decided to begin learning to be a priestess. It is a very interesting process. I haven't learned much yet, but the temples are beautiful. I have been to them before, but never really examined them this closely. They are built wonderfully, with larger blocks at the bottom and smaller ones at the top. There are stairs cut into the temples, which is how we get all the way up. I am not excited about that, as there are many, many, stairs. 

2/22/1518

I became a priestess today! It was a momentous occasion, since I started my training almost a year ago. I am excited to perform more ceremonies to honor the deities of my religion, but having to climb those hundreds of stairs every day was somehow even worse than I imagined. On another note, I am approaching 16, the age where most Aztec girls get married. I want to get married, but part of me is worried that it won't live up to my expectations. 

9/15/1519

Unfortunately, my nerves surrounding my marriage were entirely justified. I married Cipactonal just two weeks ago, and already he has turned from a charmer to a snake. He has six other wives, one of which is the main one, and he is harmful towards all of us. I am seriously considering divorce, and although my family is advising me to try and live with my marriage, I don't think I can. My husband threatened to burn this book when he saw me writing in it yesterday. The only reason I am still in possession of it is because Cipactonal believed me when I told him I had gotten rid of the book, even though all I did was hide it. 

11/20/1519

Today I ended my marriage to Cipactonal. It was surprisingly uneventful, and now I have moved out of his home and back into my family's. Hopefully I will remarry soon, so I don't have to burden them with my needs much longer, but I think I may have trouble trusting any man enough to marry him after what happened with Cipactonal. It may not have lasted long, but I still shudder to think about him. I know some of his other wives left him when I did, but I hope any that remained escape soon. That man is a curse. 

5/17/1520

Today I witnessed a human sacrifice. This is not the first time I have seen one, nor the first time I have documented it, but I feel as though I should be writing more every day, and this was the only event I think is worthy to record. Sacrifices are a very intricate process. First, the sacrifice's heart is removed, and then their skulls are cleared of flesh and mussels and placed upon wooden sticks. The priests take the sticks to the rack of skulls upon one of the other temples. Once the skulls have been exposed to the elements for long enough, their jaws may completely fall off, and then they will be fashioned into masks.