La Llorona (Spanish for the Weeping One [La-yo-ro-na]) is a familiar figure to the Hispanic population of northern New Mexico. She is heard (and sometimes seen) around ditches and other places where water may flow or accumulate. Parents warn their children about her. She wants to catch and abduct children and take them with her. She lets out a blood-curdling wail that shakes people to the bone. La Llorona is dressed all in black and sobs in loud, unnatural, and pathetic weeping.

There are several versions of the story and it may extend back to the Conquistadores. I have heard it most often haunts this northern part of our state. The haunt may be based on a true story of a woman named Maria. She was beautiful, vain, and riddled with a horribly jealous nature. A handsome stranger visited her village and fell in love with her. They married and had at two children. Over time, the woman became angry that her husband was not paying enough attention to her, yet he doted on their children. This made her angry.

In a fit of unreasonable anger, she reacted by drowning both her children in a ditch. Her husband (the loving father) and the rest of the village were shocked and appalled by her actions. Suddenly, she realizes the horrible thing she has done and goes insane. In her madness, she begins searching for her children in the ditches and arroyos. Most sightings of her seem to occur during twilight and early evening hours.

She screams and wails in frustration and frightens other children away from the ditches. Sometimes children hear her when it is late or dark—as if they should not be out—but safely back at home.

I know that a mountain lion can often sound like a screaming woman and sometimes elk can make some high-pitch noises. When I bring up this fact to the people who tell me of their personal experiences with La Llorona, they all say, “No. It was La Llorona. It wasn’t an animal.”

My most memorable story comes from a non-Hispanic woman who witnessed both the crying and the actual sight of La Llorona. Several years ago, Jane (not her real name) was driving from Chama to Santa Fe, late one afternoon. Her car went over a sort of overpass by an arroyo and she saw a woman, dressed all in black, walking by the side of the road, and crying profusely. No one else was around for miles and miles and Jane continued driving, passing her on the road. Jane is a crusty, conservative individual, not given to partake in whimsical fantasies or illusions. However, she said she had a horrible feeling of something not being right. Jane said that when she passed the woman in black, the sobbing was so unnatural that it seemed to be coming from right inside her car—in the seat next to her—even though the windows were rolled up tight. Jane said she got to Santa Fe later that evening, but she couldn’t remember anything about the ride after she passed the woman. Jane was really shaken up by the odd occurrence. Eventually, she began talking to someone in Santa Fe about her experience and that was the first time that Jane had ever heard of La Llorona. In fact, Jane still can’t pronounce “La Llorona.”

I feel this is an excellent example of a New Mexico Mystery sighting without previous regional or cultural imprinting.

—Raven DeVille