I've just finished reading a great book, "The Yada Yada Prayer Group," by Neta Jackson.
It was so good I had to go to a used bookstore the following day and try and find Book 2 in the seven-part series (so far). I did! What's the best thing about reading a good book and finding a new series of books or a new author to read? Finding it cheap!
"Yada Yada" tells the story of a diverse group of women who meet at a Christian women's conference. They are different races and socio-economic groups. They have different jobs, ages, and family make-ups. And, they have different styles of worship. But a sudden near-tragedy unites them and the prayer group extends long past the conclusion of the conference.
I AM Jodi Baxter, one of the women. I don't have kids or a husband. I don't live in the Chicago area. I'm not a teacher. But I see so much of her in me. That's including her not-so-good characteristics. I pray that I also start changing the way I see her starting to change in this book, hopefully without some of the things she goes through.
For years I've used the phrase "yada, yada" almost as an etc.-type comment. Think of mindless, fill-in-the-blank type chatter; a term I probably picked up from the "Seinfeld" show, although I never watched it much.
But that's far from the truth.
I'll let "Ruth" from the book tell what she found out about the word "yada" in the book:
"So who's the brilliant person who came up with the name Yada Yada? I knew it meant something. I looked it up in my Hebrew dictionary. 'Yada: to perceive, understand, acquire knowledge, know, discern.' And a whole lot more. Here's one I like: 'To be known, make oneself known, to be familiar.' And another: 'To distinguish (yada) between right and wrong.'"
"If we add an 'h' it gets even bettter. 'Yadah: to speak out, to confess; to praise; to sing; to give thanks.' Later it says Yadah 'essentially means to acknowledge ... the nature and work of God.'
"How about those jewels, Yada Yada sisters?"
Yeah, how about that?
