To the innovation of the Mayans

February 1, 736

Dear diary,

Today I saw my first full solar eclipse! The astronomers of my village were able to predict when it happened. Some of the people in the village believed that if you didn’t watch the eclipse through a reflection in the water, then birds would eat your eyes. It scared me, but when I actually saw the eclipse it was fine. Watching those celestial beings in the sky made me think about how small we are. 

April 26, 736

Dear diary,

Due to our agricultural and farming techniques, we have had a great harvest this year! We farmed maize, beans and squash, which were all delicious. My dad works in terraced fields, and the irrigation system really helps to get the water in and out of the field. My father went out to trade with other cities, and we got a lot of gold from that. We were able to get a whole feast!

June 21, 736

Dear diary, 

Today was the summer solstice, and we had a big celebration. After today, the sun will be reborn and each day will get longer, from the growth of the sun! My family and I went to visit Chichen Itza. Then my dad went out and traded some gold and got special obsidian daggers. He said that soon he would teach me how to hunt.

August 5, 736

Dear diary, 

Today my dad taught me how to hunt with an obsidian dagger. He brought a spear, just in case that was easier for me to handle. We went out into the rain forest to see what we could find. We traveled through rivers, up steep hills, and then we came to a big open lake. He gave me the spear because it’s easier to catch a fish with a spear than a dagger. We waited on the beach as still as possible so as not to scare the fish away, and then I saw a killifish. I remembered what my dad told me and threw the spear. I caught my first animal!

August 12, 736

Dear diary,

A lot of my friends are going away to school because their fathers are nobles or priests. They get to go and learn things about math, science, astronomy, and writing. I wish I could learn about that stuff, but I can’t because my dad isn’t someone of high class. Anyways, with some of my friends gone, I won’t get to play with them as much, I can’t go to their houses and during the day I’ll be bored. It’s not going to be the same at home. 

September 19, 736

Dear diary,

I just learned a really cool new game today. It’s a ball game where there are two hoops that the ball goes in, and you have to bounce the ball to get it in. You can use any body part but your hands to hit the ball. Some people use sticks to hit the ball into the rings, but you don’t have to so we just used our body. I won with my friends against a very good team, and it felt really good.