A country so rich that it can send people to the moon still has hundreds of thousands of its citizens who can't read. That's terribly troubling to me.

Look for joy in your life; it's not always easy to find.

Kids are always asked, What are you going to be when you grow up? I needed an answer. So instead of saying, a fireman, or a policeman, I said, a reporter.

Most of those old settlers told it like it was, rough and rocky. They named their towns Rimrock, Rough Rock, Round Rock, and Wide Ruins, Skull Valley, Bitter Springs, Wolf Hole, Tombstone. It's a tough country. The names of Arizona towns tell you all you need to know.

It's that enthusiasm, that passion for what you're doing, that is most important.

I think all those people I did stories about measured their own success by the joy their work was giving them.

I think the feature reporter often walks a very thin line between a truly human story and one that slops over into mushiness or sentimentality.