Diary of an Aztec Sweeper

By : Pahdee

It’s the new year. The warriors starve themselves. Good I'm not a warrior though being a slave is bad enough

1 November: days of precious feather. New year

Today they remember the dead warriors. Great hunting with prizes for the best hunters and cruel ceremonies where they tie prisoners up like deer, their front legs to their back legs (yes I know that its actually their arms to their legs) and got the priests to sacrifice them.

5 November: time of the hunter

Thank god they only have this tradition every 8 years! The Aztecs eat only eat water soaked tamales- meat and maize flour without spices so its like this tasteless mush. They have nice dances at the temple that ends with a ceremony where they swallow water snakes and frogs. I prefer my snake meat roasted with a side of toasted maize.

18 November: Eating of the Water Tamales Day

The Aztecs celebrate the birthday of

Huitzilopochtli who grew up to beat Coyolxauhqui in battle. People wave paper flags from houses and hang them from fruit trees and poles. Everyone enjoys themselves except the prisoners that get sacrificed at the great temple of Tenochtitlan

21 November: Days of the Raising of Banners

It usually rains about this time- that’s why they call it the “days of descent water". Cold and muddy work in the streets but at least the great temple is having a good old wash down. It's the quiet time for the sacrifices since the priests aren't too keen to spend hours sacrificing slaves in the rain

11 december-30 December: days of the descent water

Merchants pray for good trade. They sacrifice a few merchant slaves of course. The Priests dress up as gods and do some dancing before a feast with the lords. I never get invited to eat but have been invited to do all the cleaning instead.

30 december-1: days of stretching

Today they Grab the children and pull them by the neck to make them grow. Mom used to do it to me and it hurt a lot but I'm nice and tall. I've a neck like a rattlesnake

20 January: days of growth

Today the Children have their ears pierced so ornaments could be hung from them. I held my little brother down while mom drilled the holes.

28 January: Ear piercing day

Today they honor the fire god by toasting corn and animals in front of his altar. The priests get to eat the gifts to the god. I wish I was a priest so I would get to eat gifts.

31 January

The Aztecs have 18 months of 20 days in their calendar so they have these 5 useless days left over. Everyone says they’re unlucky. There's no work and no sacrificing on those days so the prisoners think they’re really lucky days.

9 February- 13 February: useless days

They don’t really raise tree’s of course . They raise poles with banners on them instead. This time they sacrifice the children in the mountains. They believe that the more the children cry, the happier the gods would be.

14 February: raising of the trees day

The young warriors have mock battles which is a bit less messy. The priests make the usual sacrifices and wear the victims skin for 20 days.

6 march : the flaying of men days

Aztecs go into the fields to sacrifice flowers! A whole lot less messier than the usual sacrifices without any sweeping to do.

26 march: the offering of flowers day

Today young Aztec girls go to bless the maize in the fields. Priests sacrifice children but at least they take them up to sacrifice in the mountains

15 April: days of the great vigil

The beginning of the dry season. There's lots of dust around so I get home filthy every night. The priest have a young man who pretends to be the god Tezcatlipoca. He has a wonderful time being treated like a god. They have a new young man every year because the gods don’t get old and they sacrifice the old young man.

5 may-22 may: days of dryness

End of the dry season and all that mud again.They give offerings of food to the tools that they use in the fields. I wish they’ll offer some to me. They bring reeds from the lakes to make new mats, seats and decoration. There's bits of reed all over. Its hard to sweep up reeds in mud you know.

23 may: days of eating maize and beans

The lord of Tenochtitlan invites the common people to go to a feast. They never invite me but there’s always food leftover so for once I cant complain.

14 June: days of the feasts of the lords

Now they're honoring the dead.They sacrifice a few slaves of course and they have a brilliant pole climbing contest which the winner gets a prize…… before he gets sacrificed.

24 July: days of the feast of the dead

The Aztecs have this big cleanup every year and all their rubbish ends up on the streets for me and the other sweepers to sweep up.

2 September: days of the sweeping

The Aztecs have this plant called the amaranth. They grind it up and bake them into models of gods and snakes. But did they eat it? No they didn’t eat it. They offered them to the gods.

12 October