A survey of modern fairy experiences by Dr Simon Young

§443

Aragon, Spain 1990s
Female: Age 31-40 occasional supernatural experiences
on or near water, in woodland, in a garden, ‘en el monte’ [on the mountain] 6 pm-9 pm less than a minute with one other person who did not share my experience
you had just woken up or were just about to go to sleep, ‘estaba feliz porque estaba de excursion, y triste porque era la primera vez que viajaba sin mis hijos’ [‘I was happy because on holiday and sad because it was the first time I was travelling without my children’]
fatigado, depistado [tired out, lost]
loss of sense of time

‘Hello, I wanted to tell you about an experience that I had, several years ago when I was about thirty-eight years old: now I’m fifty eight. My kids had gone on holiday with my husband and so I decided to go to *** with a friend. In that period I lived in *** and in that general area there was a Buddhist temple. We found a camping site and decided to rest there for the night. We hired a tent that was big enough for six people. Once in my sleeping bag – it was summer – we spoke before saying good night. There was no need for a light as the streetlights outside were bright. Just then a duende flew by, as if it was really empty-headed and exhausted after a very intense day. It was as if the duende was talking to someone and then decided to take the road home past our tent. She had wings, a large nose, green clothes and, in her hand, a candlestick with a guard. She was about twenty-centimetres tall. She seemed shocked that I had seen her: she looked at me and passed on by the tent. I can’t remember other details as it all happened a long time ago. But I can tell you that I was not expecting to see gnomes or fairies! Yet I saw her, this ugly little thing (feota) but PRECIOUS, a bit empty-headed by the company and exhausted from a work and she was leaving to go and rest. It was 9 pm. I think it was a duende not a fairy.’ ‘It was a duende, a little like in the stories, who belonged to that place. There was the impression that she was a bit late and was coming back from her fields and I could see her but not the others with her and I saw her as she went past the tent.’ ‘[Fairies are] from another plane or dimension.’ ‘This happened a long time ago and already I can’t remember the details, but I saw it. I saw her before my eyes something precious, small and big-nosed.’