The Advocate

(Art by Jason Edmiston) "The monsters were never // under my bed. // Because the monsters // were inside my head. // I fear no monsters, // for no monsters I see. // Because all this time // the monster has been me." — Nikita Gill Happy Halloween! Take note and take care.

( Art by Bluelela ) Gimel Zayin Yud : GZY is an acronym for gam zeh ya'avor, which means "this too shall pass / and this, too, shall pass away." There are many stories of its origin, but this is my favorite:  "One day Solomon decided to humble Benaiah Ben Yehoyada, his most trusted minister. He said to him, “Benaiah, there is a certain ring that I want you to bring to me.” “If it exists anywhere on earth, your majesty,” replied Benaiah, “I will find it and bring it to you, but what makes the ring so special?” “It has magic powers,” answered the king. “If a happy man looks at it, he becomes sad, and if a sad man looks at it, he becomes happy.” Solomon knew that no such ring existed in the world, but he wished to give his minister a little taste of humility. Spring passed and then summer, and still Benaiah had no idea where he could find the ring. He was about to give up when he decided to take a walk in one of the poorest quarters of Jerusalem. He passed by a merchant

(Art by Jonathan Horowitz) "I get along best with people I don't need to explain things to. Unfortunately for me, I tend to work almost exclusively with people who need some explaining." — paraphrase of Kat Blaque Take note and take care.

(Art by Robert Deninno) Kavod Habriyot : human honor and dignity. A concept for how we interpret and apply Jewish laws and rules where we uplift the inherent value and worth of a person over anything else. It is another principle that allows a Jew to violate religious requirements in pursuit of a higher good that is similar to pikuach nefesh (saving a life). For instance, when Rav Nahman bar Yitzhak is challenged by Rabbi Yohanan, the brother of his good friend Mar. The story goes that a corpse was found in the city of Derokera, and Rav Nahman bar Yitzhak permitted carrying it to a karmelit (a semi-public domain into which carrying on Shabbat only involves a minor transgression). Notably, "Rav Nahman bar Yitzhak was a renowned scholar who later became head of the Babylonian Academy in Pumbeditha. But as we are taught elsewhere, his primary scholarly achievements involved not innovating new legal positions, but accurately preserving and sharing the Torah teachings that he had recei

It has been 18 months since Steven Taylor was murdered by former San Leandro Police Officer Jason Fletcher in less than 40 seconds from when he arrived on scene. It has been 18 months since still active SLPD Officer Stefan Overton was an accessory to the crime, tasing Steven even after he had already been shot. It has been 18 months since the ongoing racism and inequity within San Leandro was laid bare in a way that was impossible to ignore or deny. A judge in the proceedings recently denied Fletcher's motion to dismiss the case.  However, Fletcher didn't bother to appear in court, letting his attorney, Michael Rains of the Oakland Riders police corruption scandal , to bloviate on his behalf. Among the notable remarks were these:  "Alameda County Superior Court Judge Thomas Reardon asked why Fletcher did not wait for his backup since Taylor allegedly posed no immediate threat to anyone when Fletcher arrived at the Walmart at 15555 Hesperian Blvd. on April 18, 2020." &

(Art by Takashi Murakami, Japan Supernatural: Vertiginous After Staring at the Empty World Too Intensely, I Found Myself Trapped in the Realm of Lurking Ghosts and Monsters, 2019) "Some people will never like you because your spirit irritates their demons."  —  Denzel Washington Take note and take care.

Devekut : literally means dedication but traditionally refers to cleaving to God. In ancient Hebrew, to cleave is to become close, to join with, to adhere, to abide fast together, to follow. In religious Judaism and in academia, it's most commonly associated with the philosophical and mystical understanding of cleaving or attaching oneself to God in all areas of life. It can also refer to a deep, trance-like meditative state attained during prayer, Torah study, or when performing the 613 mitzvot. While it's particularly associated with the Jewish mystical tradition, in modern Israeli Hebrew, it's also often a synonym for dedication towards a particular goal. Devekut is that moment of silence when your mind is completely open, listening to your spirit harmonize with the world around you. It can appear as a sudden flash or a quiet realization, and all your misconceptions fall away until the only thing that remains is a feeling of pure connection with whatever you choose to fo