Justin M. Gardner  |  Instagram  |  Facebook

I wear many hats, which include that of father, gay man, lawyer, Christian, hiker, writer, son, historian, philosopher, swimmer, brother, pianist, singer, friend, amateur organist, social commentator, foodie, and handyman.  I am the proverbial jack of all trades and master of none.  There are many other things that I aspire to be.   You may find me in a seedy gay club white girl twerking on a Saturday evening, only to discover early the next morning that I am in my Sunday best and robed up singing hymns as the loudest, most melanin-deficient member of my church choir in Harlem.  My interests are as boundless as the Universe that contains them, which can sometimes cause me to be very scattered and distracted.

For example, I was walking past my laptop to jump in the shower and realized that my blog needed an “about” page with my contact info if this endeavor was to be successful, so I did the only logical thing and composed this entire page in the nude in my living room, typing as quickly as possible, so that I could get to the shower awaiting me.  It is entirely likely that when I resume my journey to the shower, I will walk past the kitchen and remember to put a couple of dishes away and grab that beer I was craving two hours ago, until I was distracted by something else.  I will probably also randomly text an “I love you” or “happy Sunday evening” text to whatever friend who randomly pops into my mind on my way.

I started this blog as part of my effort to promote my writing, as that is my passion, and also as part of the next phase of my healing process as someone who has been forced to unlearn and relearn everything that I thought I knew and believed about the world as a young adult.  The catalyst for this change was the realization that as a gay man in a straight marriage, everything my conservative Christian upbringing had taught me about human sexuality, faith in Jesus, the nature of the world, and pretty much everything else, was wrong.  It wasn’t only wrong but it was deadly wrong for me.

So at the age of 33, against all logic and common sense, I did what can only be described as taking a nuclear bomb to my entire life and after the radioactive fallout had settled, I gathered what little wreckage that could be salvaged and began the arduous and incredibly painful process of rebuilding a life, MY life.

In the process, I discovered that my journey out of the faith was actually my journey back to faith and that all my mistakes were actually not mistakes at all, but part of the journey, MY journey.  The road is not, and has not been, easy, but even the parts that make me cry and send me spiraling into the abyss of depression, have been strangely beautiful and perhaps even providential.

So I created this blog entitled Cairns of Stone as my way of  erecting little landmarks, monuments and trail markers along the way as I journey to the promised land.  Perhaps those who follow behind me will find them useful or interesting.  Some I’m sure will try hard to knock them down, but be careful, the rocks may just crush you as they did the haters who came along before you.  My first entry, entitled Stones, is about my story and provides the foundation of everything else likely to follow.  Check it out!

Oh yeah, and I really love rocks!!!