La Llorana

Main Piece: “There use to be a game I played with my friends called  La Llorona where if you say that name three times and splash water on the mirror a lady called La Llorona would appear and kill you. La Llorona was a Mexican lady who had two kids but they were abducted. After that she was traumatized and would always cry in the middle of the street trying to find her kids. My earliest memory of the game was being in elementary school and being in the girl’s bathroom. My friends and I would splash water on the mirror and say her name three times which was “La Llorona. La Llorona. La Llorona. But to be honest was just seeing who could stand being in the darkroom and seeing how long we could stand there waiting for her to come out of the sink and my friends and I would just start screaming and run out”.

Background Information: The informant learned this game with his friends in middle school, and most of his friends were female who were also Mexican. He said this was a very popular game for young girls and he was one of the only boys who would play but he was always too scared to actually do it.

Context: Next to a park in Los Angeles

Thoughts: This story seems to also have parallels with Bloody Mary in terms of it being popular with young girls, and that a mirror is involved, and the number 3 is significant. I am curious why the number 3 is also significant in this context in other cultures and not just America, and if the origin of these bathroom stories came from one person or one culture specifically.