Anne Gardner

Cognoscenti contributor

Anne Gardner is an Episcopal minister and currently leads the chaplaincy program at Harvard-Westlake, a private high school in Los Angeles. Her debut book, "And So I Walked: Reflections on Chance, Choice, and the Camino de Santiago," (Adelaide Books, NY/Lisbon) recounts her 500-mile hike across northern Spain. Learn more here.

Recently published

"Libraries were our cathedrals and books our most revered companions," writes Anne Gardner. (Getty Images)

I’ve lugged my books through 9 moves. I can’t leave them behind

The stories in Anne Gardner's books — from "The Little Prince" to "Common Ground" — aren't the only stories they hold.

Cognoscenti

Jul 26, 2023

Beth O'Connor, the author's wife, holds a photo of Hunter, her grandson, who has cancer. (Courtesy Anne Gardner)

How my wife and I entered the bizarre world of MrBeast

At 70, my wife was chosen for the latest competition of a YouTube sensation known to a much younger demographic, writes Anne Gardner. But the experience was a rare chance,...

Cognoscenti

Jun 20, 2023

The author, Rev. Anne Gardner, posing behind a contestant podium on display in an exhibit area adjacent to the set of “Jeopardy!” after watching a live taping of the show in Los Angeles, 2023. (courtesy Anne Gardner)

What’s in a priest collar? A trip to ‘Jeopardy!’ made me wonder

For superfan Anne Gardner, watching “Jeopardy!” live was a dream come true – and it prompted her to reflect on how some questions have more than one right answer.

Cognoscenti

Jan 12, 2023

On the hiking trail of the Camino de Santiago, 2010. (Courtesy Anne Gardner)

Lost and found: Walking 500 miles on the Camino de Santiago

It can be hard to hear the wisdom of one’s interior life in the cacophony of our contemporary world, writes Anne Gardner.

Cognoscenti

Oct 7, 2022

In this June 26, 2011 file photo, Actress Olympia Dukakis, a celebrity Grand Marshall for the 41st annual Gay Pride parade, waves to the crowd in San Francisco. (Jeff Chiu/AP)

My time with Olympia Dukakis, the lioness of Lowell

The actor’s Massachusetts childhood gave root to her candor, her feistiness, her political bent, her sexual mores and her strident disapproval of the sins of patriarchy, writes Anne Gardner. Dukakis...

Cognoscenti

Jun 10, 2022

The mammogram of a 40-year-old woman's breast. (Peter Dazeley/The Image Bank for Getty Images)

What to say when someone you love gets cancer

The biopsy confirmed what the radiologist, and then surgeon, had suspected -- I had cancer. Anne Gardner reflects on her breast cancer diagnosis.

Cognoscenti

Oct 7, 2021

Spectators begin to disperse following the 147th running of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs on May 01, 2021 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Sam Mallon/Getty Images)

I Broke My Pandemic Quarantine At The Kentucky Derby

The race forced me to rip my COVID Band-Aid off with one quick yank, writes Anne Gardner.

Cognoscenti

May 21, 2021

A photo of the author's mother in the 1960s wearing "Justin Beaver." (Courtesy)

My Life With 'Justin Beaver': Confessions Of A Closet Fur-Owner

PETA may have moved on from fur -- but I'm not ready, writes Anne Gardner.

Cognoscenti

Apr 6, 2021

I'm A Minister Who'd Rather Officiate Funerals Than Weddings. Until This Year

By this time last year, Anne Gardner had performed four weddings, on four consecutive weekends, in three different states. This September? Not even one. COVID has reminded me how much...

Cognoscenti

Sep 30, 2020

Ward Reservation in Andover (Patrick Cheetham for Bay Circuit Trail)

How Do You Say Goodbye, When You Can’t Say Goodbye?

After 30 years, Anne Gardner is moving from Massachusetts to California, but the pandemic has made "saying goodbye" difficult. So, she took a different approach -- and decided to do...

Cognoscenti

Jun 9, 2020