Ojalá: My Favorite Spanish Word

Karen Estep shares the hope and beauty she finds in her favorite Spanish word.

I know enough Spanish to get myself in and out of trouble when visiting countries where Spanish is spoken. I actually spoke Spanish pretty fluently for a while due to going to a Spanish immersion camp in middle school, going through all the levels of Spanish offered in my high school, and taking a trip to Spain and then some Spanish classes in college. However, the truth for language is: if you don’t use it, you lose it. I am now about 50% fluent and can only speak in the present tense, because conjugating verbs is just beyond me right now. My future goal, ojalá, is to once again be at least 80%-90% fluent and be able to talk about the past and the future.

My favorite Spanish word of all time is ojalá (pronounced oh-ha-LA). Now, when translated, it translates to “hopefully.” However, at the core this word really means, “God willing.” Spain, at one point in its long, beautifully rich history, was conquered by the Moors. The Moors were Arabic speakers, and one of the things that comes from places being conquered is that the language can be influenced. The word ojalá comes from the Arabic word “inshallah,” which means, you guessed it—God willing.

They that hope in the Lord will renew their strength, they will soar on eagles’ wings; they will run and not grow weary, walk and not grow faint. (Isaiah 40:31)

I have been a Christian since I was in second grade. One thing they do not always tell you is that when you follow Christ it is a marathon, not a sprint. In this day and age in which we live, we are constantly looking for instant gratification. Often, I even think, “OK, God, I did my Surrender Novena faithfully … now … come on, it’s time for Your part!” However, in case you didn't know, this isn’t how God always works. God’s timing is so perfect and God is able to see the bigger picture more than we comprehend in the instant that we need gratification.

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God is hope and it is our hope in God that allows us to renew our strength, to soar on eagles' wings, and to run without growing weary. #catholicmom

There are days that turn into weeks that can turn into months of waiting and growing weary of putting my hope in the Lord. I will be perfectly honest, this is a fault of my Type-A personality. I want to be in total control; I do not want to surrender my worries, fears, dreams and hopes to the Lord. I want things to be done in MY time and in MY way. One of my favorite proverbs is, “Man plans and God laughs” and, well, that should give you a bit of my background.

The word ojalá speaks to me in such a way that when I think about the word, I think about its true meaning of, God willing, not Karen willing because if that were the case my life would be a big old flop. (It would also mean that we could eat unlimited chocolate cake without gaining an ounce …) Despite my lack of faith and true surrender (why I still pray the Surrender Novena often to fully give my all to God), plus my desire to have control over all situations in my life, God is still so faithful to me. It is often only after the “storm” that I truly see what God’s intentions for me were and I know this, yet time and time again, I fail God and I try to control. Also, time and time again, God shows me His love and that He does not fail me.

I love the word ojalá and sometimes try to sneak it in even when I am speaking only English. And when you truly think about how the word is translated into the word hopefully, isn’t that also kind of neat? God is hope and it is our hope in God that allows us to renew our strength, to soar on eagles' wings, and to run without growing weary.

eagle in flight