Legend of The Crying Woman
December 15th, 2009 by John WolfeHere, in the desert southwest, the cautionary tale of “the crying woman,” better known as La Llorona has been told and retold for centuries.
Source: YT user, igorstar123
This second vid provides a peek into La Llorona’s New Mexico connection.
Source: YT user, MeneGene
As a boy, during a summertime visit to my grandparents’ home (just south of Albuquerque, NM), the neighborhood kids told me tales of the crying woman. Unfortunately, the sun had almost set by the time their storytelling had ended that day and I still needed to walk home.
Though my grandparents’ house was just a few hundred yards away, there was a ditch (brimming full of water) right outside their yard. Just my luck, I had to walk adjacent to the waterway to reach the back door of the house; all the while my mind was frantically recalling La Llorona stories! Luckily, I made it to the door, but I swear I heard the bushes moving near the water, as well as a mournful wailing sound. 
Whether the story of the crying woman and her ghost have any basis in fact or not, they definitely have served as a method for trying to keep children away from rivers, arroyos and ditches. In New Mexico, there was even a bumper sticker campaign, a few years back, that featured a “witchy” cartoon woman standing next to the slogan, “Ditches are Deadly. Stay Away!”
With that being said, I’m not insinuating the lady in the above video was lying. I believe she witnessed something, but without more evidence, I’m not ready to say it was definitely the legendary crying woman’s ghost looking for her lost children.
December 15th, 2009 at 9:31 pm
Oh my, that first video was terribly sad. If all of those stories are true and not urban legend, my God. It really makes you wonder what is up with the vibrational tones of the Sante Fe River. To have so many couples so desperate in their own search for self and what life means, they instead get caught up in the matters that very much effect present day living and murder the poor children. My heart weeps my friend. In addition, if there is truth to the stories then can you imagine the energy in that spot, or along the river. The amount of children who lost their lives there is beyond tragic but to have their little bodies in that river, their spirits somehow connected to that physical body but the mothers who died there as well. I have never ever heard of such a tale involving a river and murder. Plus I would hope that since they were all no longer in a physical body that they did find each other and continued on with what best suit them.
This may sound a bit out there right now, and given how sensitive you are to energy to begin this might not be the thing for you to ever do but rather just imagine what the EVP sounds must be there!!!! I would imagine not very peaceful since their death was abrupt and in murder or suicide. Would be interesting to see what got picked up though, would it not?
John, after you would safely make it inside of your grandparents home when you were younger, did you ever think about La Llorona coming into your room to visit you or did you feel you were safe because it seemed like she mostly stayed outside looking for her hijos. If your encounter at the cemetery was wearing a white gown and had long flowing hair, I would really be wondering right now. Even though “that” cemetery is not on the river, that “energy” did appear to be looking rapidly for someone(s) who was buried there. Never know……….you and your Mom are a powerful duel
This was a really good find, great job!
December 15th, 2009 at 10:03 pm
Goldie,
Thanks for your great reply. While there may have been an event that actually took place involving some version of the La Llorona legend, I tend to take most of these tales with a grain of salt. Especially when you consider this story is told throughout NM, TX, AZ, Mexico and South America. Almost every town has their own version, and coincidentally, each town is said to have its own crying woman wandering the rivers, irrigation ditches and arroyos (not just in Santa Fe). It would take thousands, if not millions of La Lloronas to occupy all those waterways.
I’m not sure why this legend caught on so strongly, but perhaps it worked so well in keeping the kids away from the river that everyone started using it as a way to instill fear in their children.
If you could pinpoint the exact location along the Santa Fe River, where the lady said she encountered La Llorona, then it would definitely be a good place to see what showed up on digital audio. Like I said, based on her description of how specific her encounter was, it does appear she bumped into something, but who or what is hard to say.
Even after getting inside my grandparents’ house, I was still scared! LOL. For the rest of my stay, during that summer (I think was eight-years old), I didn’t even want to go out after dark. Being that my grandparents live near a big irrigation ditch, I was even scared to fall asleep in my bedroom. I kept picturing the crying woman coming in the yard and scratching at my window pane!!
That’s a good point about the woman in the cemetery. If she was dressed differently and the location was a little closer to the river, then it would have definitely got me thinking again about La Llorona! You’re right, she was very busy in trying to locate someone.
It’s my pleasure and thanks again for watching and commenting.
December 15th, 2009 at 10:10 pm
That is definitely one of the biggest legends of the Southwest, ghost-wise. We have at least 2 La Llorona ones here in AZ; both near washes, drowned child… I heard it began in Mexico and was a cautionary tale that they brought with them. I would love to see one!
December 16th, 2009 at 7:42 pm
autumnforest,
Being an Arizona resident, I knew that you would know all about La Llorona.