First letter from Mexico to the Spanish Crown

Hernan Cortes wrote to Emperor Charles V to prove to him that Hispaniola was a place that was worth Spain's time to keep Cortes there.

The entire portion of the letter that is in the Anthology is 4 1/2 pages of what the Aztec's gave to Cortes as gifts to the Spanish. 4 1/2 pages as a written log of what was going back to the leaders of the country. None of these were cheap (though today may be seen as gaudy) and it makes me think to today's society. People feel the need to show off jewelry, money, big houses, expensive cars, etc, to prove their worth in society. Its not enough to be happy with yourself, your job, your relationships, or family. Its necessary to show that we're happy and worth a lot through the type of things we are able to show to others.

It saddens me, in a way, because as we grow as a society, I would like to think that it's not necessary to continue to prove ourselves in that way, yet instead of getting better, we only get worse. Now we're hooked on plastic surgery to fix our noses, ears, boobs, stomach, and even our kneecaps and our ankles. I don't know the last time I looked down and said, "Man, my knees sure are sagging today. Better do some knee exercises so that I can keep them tone and firm." Doctors are cashing in on peoples low self esteem, and we're feeding into it. Butt implants? Sure, I need to have a badonkadonk the size of J. Lo's even though I'm not Hispanic and when I usually look in the mirror my butt is as flat as a pancake. (Really, I'm a white girl ... it's alright that it's flat.) Foreign objects implanted into my body to make me feel better about myself never sat right with me. I'm an accident waiting to happen as it is, I'm not sure I need something that could make me sick implanted in me to make me feel good for a month, 'til I look in the mirror and see something else that isn't perfect.