But, as I write this, I can’t help but take the news coming out of Boston right now personally. 

The granddaddy of all marathons – the Boston Marathon – marred by terrorism; explosions set off at the finish line; hundreds of people injured; several people dead, including an eight-year-old child. 

I am outraged, horrified and so saddened.

My family has stood to cheer me on just feet from where the first explosion went off.

I know the euphoria that a runner feels when the finish line comes into view. This city embraces this marathon like no other. It’s more than a marathon; it’s an experience. 

What happened in Boston is absolutely sickening. 

My phone started going off shortly after noon on Patriots Day, also known as Marathon Day in Boston. 

I’ve run it the last two years, three years in all. I didn’t realize how many people didn’t know I’d be sitting out this year’s race to rehab an injury after last year’s record-breaking Boston Marathon heat.

The phone rang, the texts went off and social media messages started coming in almost immediately from people wanting to know if I was okay. Right away I thought about Bonnie, my friend and executive producer who was running her first Boston Marathon. The explosions went off right about the time I figured she’d be crossing. I called her frantically and, when I got her voice mail, I panicked. I turned on the TV and sat in horror as I saw the video of the explosion and the terrified looks on the faces of spectators as they scattered like bugs. I watched in horror as runners collapsed and cried in disbelief.

I know Boylston Street well. I know how packed it gets with cheering people lined up along it, using their voices to give runners that last boost of energy. I know that last turn of the corner less than a mile from where the explosions went off. I know that had I been there this year, my sister, my daughter and my fiancé would have been just feet from where the first bomb went off, just as they had been before. 

The reality of all what could have been – and all that is – is simply surreal. 

For all the victims, my heart breaks. Their world will never be the same.

Bonnie crossed the finish line 15 minutes before the explosions. She was safe and we were all so relieved.

When my co-anchor walked in to work today, the first thing he did was give me a hug. 

We both got emotional tonight during the newscast, thinking about the “what ifs.”

Tonight we couldn’t help but show we are more than just faces on a screen. We are real people with real emotions.

Tonight the news got personal and we weren’t afraid to show it.

Catherine Anaya anchors CBS 5 News weeknights at 5, 5:30, 6 and 10 p.m. She is a mother of two, marathon runner and motivational speaker. Reach her at catherine.anaya@cbs5az.com; connect with her on Facebook, twitter and at CatherineAnaya.com.

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I knew I’d feel frustrated by having to pack everything I own and physically move it to a new home knowing nothing would be out of its box or in its right place for days, if not weeks. But, what I didn’t expect was the emotion I’d feel for some of the things I was leaving behind.

It’s been exactly six years since I last moved. I remember the excitement I felt at getting the keys to my own, post-divorce home. It felt good to buy furniture knowing I didn’t have to ask what somebody else thought first. Everything, from where I’d place my TV to what kind of sheets I put on my bed, was my decision and I loved everything these possessions represented.

So, as I stood the other night in the middle of the near empty house, I had mixed feelings. I looked at the holes in the wall where my pictures once hung, remembering that it was one of my bosses and her husband who came over that first weekend after I moved in to help me hang them.

I looked at the barbecue grill in the backyard remembering another co-worker who came over with his son one afternoon so they could assemble the grill for me, along with a desk and bar stools, too. 

The boxed Christmas tree in the garage was too big for me to put together by myself that first Christmas in my home. All it took was the promise of some pizza, and some of our production guys were there to put it up and take it down for me after the holidays.

The TV stand? Yup, one of the editors at work put that together for me.

On the outside, they’re just things. But I see them as more. They’re also lovely reminders of how much my friends and co-workers rallied around me when I needed the help. 

We’ve heard it takes a village to raise a child. Well, sometimes it takes the same to help carry an adult through transitions in life and I’m, oh, so grateful for my little village of co-workers I also call friends.

As for the neurosis stimulated by the oodles of boxes? I’m learning to temper it knowing that everything will eventually find its place. More important is taking a few moments to stop and appreciate the new beginning these boxes represent; something my son’s fourth-grade teacher affirmed for me with this one sentence e-mail she sent about him:

“[He] is glowing with the move, new house, and your upcoming marriage!”  

It doesn’t get much better than that!

Catherine Anaya anchors CBS 5 News weeknights at 5, 5:30, 6 and 10 p.m. She is a mother of two, marathon runner and motivational speaker. Reach her at catherine.anaya@cbs5az.com, connect with her on Facebook, twitter and at CatherineAnaya.com.

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But, after years of complaining and eye-rolling about it, I finally accepted that what I considered my mother’s obsession with “junk” was actually a passion she’s had for finding treasure in someone else’s so-called trash.

It made her happy and who was I to argue with that, right?

We all have a little bit of it in us – slumbering passions and interests just waiting for us to stir and transform into dreams.

Take, for example, Cathy Garcia. I recently featured her in a CBS5 News story about her Cha-Cha Chic line of designer tees that were selected to go inside the Grammy Award celebrity “swag” bags.

Think about that. Everyone who is anyone in the music industry will now own one of her very colorful, fun, Latin-inspired tees. It’s her biggest break yet, and one that this Glendale woman might never have had were it not for a conversation she had with her granddaughter.

After years of taking care of her family, she wondered out loud about what she could do for herself. She credits her granddaughter with goading her: “Nana, you’re creative; just create!”

So, she took her passion for fashion and flair to a sketch pad and came up with a unique set of vibrant tees inspired by childhood memories and moments. In just three short years, her dream went from a conversation to a reality.

And that brings me back to my mom.

At 62 years old, she’s finally living a dream of her own.

Just last month, she took her love of all things used and opened her own thrift shop. All the boxes and bags of “stuff” that have taken up room in her house, garage, car and even my closet now sit, hang and  stand beautifully in the space she calls “Second Hand Treasures.”

She beams when she talks about it, despite the labor and dollars involved in becoming a small business owner. 

Both of these women are prime examples of the many shapes and sizes our passions can take and why no dream is ever too big or small to build on. Inspiration is everywhere we just have to take the time to look.

Catherine Anaya anchors CBS 5 News weeknights at 5, 5:30, 6 and 10 p.m. She is a mother of two, marathon runner and motivational speaker. Reach her at catherine.anaya@cbs5az.com; connect with her on Facebook, twitter and at CatherineAnaya.com.

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Mister Wonderful proposed in December, on my birthday, in a place that’s about as close to paradise as I’ve ever been. It was a perfect way to cap a milestone in years and a year of milestones, and further proof of just how far I’ve come.

If you read my columns regularly, you know I’ve shared some pretty tough experiences over the years. My marriage was over long before the divorce, which only made it official. I was pretty adamant I would never remarry. I had soured on the whole idea and wanted nothing more than to bask in my new-found freedom and assert my independence for the rest of my life. 

I chose divorce because I didn’t want my children getting a false sense of what love and marriage were supposed to be. They didn’t see their parents affectionate with each other or even say “I love you,” and, in my opinion, that picture is almost as bad as seeing your parents argue all the time.   

But I have wondered in the years since about what they might be missing.

My son is pretty oblivious most of the time to anything other than sports, but my daughter has had a front row seat to my post-divorce dating and it hasn’t always left the best impression.

That’s why I’m beyond ecstatic to be where I am right now, not just for my life but for “our” life.

I knew the first time I met my fiancé that he was something special. But, that my kids knew it as well is an even bigger testament to the man he is. 

He does more than just play catch with my son or take him to a sporting event (which does go a long way with a boy). He’s taught my son the importance of opening the door for his mom and stepping aside to let his mom and sister walk in front of him because “ladies go first.” 

With my daughter, who’s tough as steel, he helped her learn how to drive, cheered at her basketball games even when I wasn’t there, but – more importantly – has shown her what love is supposed to look like by treating me with the kind of respect I want her to expect for herself. 

When I called to tell her the good news, I could hear the pure joy in her voice. What she messaged me later really went to the heart of it: “Mom, I haven’t stopped smiling since I talked to you. I’m so happy for you!” 

That warmed my heart and made me realize that, perhaps, I’ve taught her one of the most important lessons of all: Never settle for less than what you know you deserve – even if it takes you half your life to find it.

Catherine Anaya anchors CBS 5 News weeknights at 5, 5:30, 6 & 10 p.m. She is a mother of two, marathon runner and motivational speaker. Reach her at catherine.anaya@cbs5az.com, connect with her on Facebook, twitter and at CatherineAnaya.com.

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 It’s been the most professionally and personally rewarding decade of my life.

When I first came to “the nickel” in 2003, I had just given birth to my son a month before, leaving my husband and daughter behind in Los Angeles so she could finish the school year.

It was just my son and I, living in an apartment the station put me in for three months to give me time to find a home. 

I scrambled to find someone to care for him while I worked, feeling immense guilt at leaving such a tiny guy in the hands of someone else while I went to work each day. But there was something special about the place. I knew it wasn’t “just another job” and, though I’d go home each night to a very colicky baby, I sort of felt like maybe he understood.

The people who hired me then were caring, deeply supportive and never caused me to reconsider for a moment that returning to the Valley after a four-year stint in Los Angeles was the best move I’d ever made.

 One of the things I stressed the most in my interview was that I was very passionate about my involvement in the Latino community, and I wanted to know that the station would support me in those endeavors. They did then and they do now.

The people who hired me then are no longer here. But, the people who now hold those positions are equally supportive – not just of me personally, but also of my commitment to this community. And so, I would be remiss in celebrating this milestone at CBS 5 News if I didn’t share it with all of you in the community. I would not be here without your support through the years. 

Some of you might remember when I came to the Valley the very first time, just 24 years old with only a few years of broadcasting experience under my belt.

KPNX had hired me and the lovely Lucia Madrid (in charge of station community relations) put together a reception in my honor, to welcome me to the community and give me a chance to get to know many of you.

You welcomed me with open arms and, when I left 6 years later, it felt like I was leaving family. Coming back was like coming home.

In the cumulative 16 years I’ve lived and worked in the Valley, we’ve collaborated on many community events together. We’ve sat on boards together. We’ve spent weeks in leadership training together. We’ve worked on projects to inspire and encourage our youth together. You’ve respected when I’ve had to ask the tough questions, and you’ve appreciated the objectivity that comes with my job. You’ve welcomed me into your home. You’ve cheered for my personal triumphs and have been quick to offer a hand when I’ve taken a fall.

For all that, I celebrate with gratitude and appreciation.

Catherine Anaya anchors CBS 5 News weeknights at 5, 5:30, 6 and 10 p.m. She is a mother of two, marathon runner and motivational speaker. Reach her at catherine.anaya@cbs5az.com, connect with her on Facebook, Twitter and at CatherineAnaya.com.

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But a civics lesson for my nine-year-old son actually came from those ads.

A few weeks before the election, he asked me to explain the role of a U.S. Senator. I did so and explained how one of Arizona’s U.S. Senators was retiring so that the seat was up for grabs. He exclaimed, “Oh, I know who’s running for that, Richard Carmona and Jeff Flake.” I was blown away that he knew their names. “How did you know that?” I asked. “From their ‘commercials’ on TV,” he answered.

We talked about the purpose of political ads and then he asked why they were “so mean.”

 I loved his intrigue and curiosity. 

He saw me studying a binder of facts pertaining to the election and got a kick out of seeing that  “mommy has homework too!,” something he shared with his class when his teacher talked about the voting process.

I was thrilled to see him engage in the political process; it got my mind swirling. “Perhaps I’ve got a future political consultant, political writer or a presidential candidate,” I thought to myself. Okay, I was getting a little ahead of myself, but you get the idea.   

On election eve, he asked if I’d be voting in the morning. He was disappointed to learn I had already voted by mail a few weeks earlier. So I promised to take him by a polling place election morning on our way to school. A wonderful volunteer at the polling station walked him through the voting process and he left with a greater understanding and an “I Voted Today” sticker. 

On election night I was on the air with election results and updates every half hour, so I didn’t have much time to talk with the kids by phone. 

At about 8 p.m., I got this e-mail from my daughter about my son:

“[He] is obsessed with this election. He’s updating me every five seconds and hasn’t taken his eyes off the TV. And he’s asking me about Obama and Romney’s policies and deciding which ones he agrees with. It’s so funny. He totally understands it too.”

I can’t tell you how happy it made me that my nine-year-old son could get so involved in the election process at such a young age; that he could actually want to read up on each presidential candidate’s policies and positions on issues; that he asked to visit a polling station. These are solid reminders of a simple lesson that our children are not too young to learn: the right to vote is a privilege that we should never take for granted.

Catherine Anaya anchors CBS 5 News weeknights at 5, 5:30, 6 and 10 p.m. She is a mother of two, marathon runner and motivational speaker. Reach her at catherine.anaya@cbs5az.com, connect with her on Facebook, twitter and at CatherineAnaya.com.

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A few years ago a co-worker honored me with a request to write something similar to his soon-to-be-16-year-old daughter. 

He and his wife wanted to present her with letters of advice from people they love and respect.

Here’s part of what I wrote:

“When I was 16, I spent much of my time alone while my single mother went to work and school, trying to improve herself. 

At the time, I didn’t appreciate the sacrifices she was making to help me one day achieve my own dreams. I only knew that I resented the fact that she wasn’t there. I wanted the two-story home with the white picket fence, eating dinner with two parents – not reheating frozen food in a studio apartment, alone. 

Please remember to love and appreciate your parents for the things they do, instead of dwelling on the things they don’t. They may not be there all the time, but know that they are trying to earn a living and create a life for you far better than their own. They would move mountains for you, and everything they do is always from a place of love … 

Study hard. My mother ingrained in me the importance of higher education. I grew up surrounded by teen pregnancy, high school drop-outs, drugs and violence. I was fortunate to have a parent who not only spoke the words, but practiced what she preached when it came to getting an education. Education is the ticket to success. Everyone measures success differently, but education will allow you to measure yours however you choose … 

Get a job. I took great pride in earning my own money and not having to ask my mother for everything. Yes, the first job was only scooping ice cream at Häagen Dazs, but I took my work seriously, even then. I worked my way up to assistant manager. And when I made cheerleading, and my mom told me I had to pay for my camp and uniform, I took a second job that summer. Yes, it was only Taco Bell, but I learned how to roll a mean burrito! Even if it’s a few hours a week – take a job and learn responsibility.” 

I asked my friend if I could steal his idea for my own daughter when the time came. 

As you read this, we will have just celebrated her 16^th birthday, and I will have given her a book full of letters – some from family, others from people she knows well, not so well or not at all. 

As I write this, several letters have started coming in. They’re poignant and personal – everything from valuing her relationship with her brother to treasuring her impending right to vote.  

I encourage you to consider this for a teen in your life. Some gifts are forever and worth more than anything money can buy.

Catherine Anaya anchors CBS 5 News weeknights at 5, 5:30, 6 & 10pm. She is a mother of two, marathon runner and motivational speaker. Reach her at catherine.anaya@cbs5az.com, connect with her on Facebook, twitter and at CatherineAnaya.com.

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Taylor Swift wrote the song, Ronan, after following his mom Maya’s heartbreaking blog about the untimely death of her three-year-old son, Ronan, to cancer, and then meeting Maya several months later backstage at one of her concerts.

Like the song that immediately soared to the top of the iTunes charts, Ronan’s story has hit a heart-wrenching nerve among people all over the world. It has prompted many like me to hold our children that much closer at the terrifying thought of losing them. It’s also spotlighted some sobering statistics about childhood cancer. According to the Ronan Thompson Foundation website:

46 children a day are diagnosed with cancer

Seven of them will die today

Childhood cancer is the number one disease killer of children

Pediatric cancer only receives 3.8 percent of all cancer research funding

Years ago, I won my first Emmy Award for a multi-part story I did on a five-year-old little girl’s battle with leukemia. It was bittersweet recognition for a story that started out as a push to find a match for a bone marrow transplant. I never considered that little Ashley wouldn’t survive. I detailed her courageous fight and the physical and emotional toll it took on her parents.

My daughter was less than a year old at the time. The more attached I became to Ashley and her family’s plight, the more I realized how just how easily their tragedy could have been mine, yours, anyone’s.  

I don’t know Maya personally. But, through her blog, I have felt her grief. Through Swift’s song, I get a sense of what her boy was like; an innocent little being who shouldn’t have had to face such a terrifying disease. 

Both mothers are proving that even the smallest effort at change can lead to unimaginable results.

I downloaded the song. I listen to it every day and have yet to do so without crying. I’ve shared it with my children and with my social media friends. 

I encourage you to listen to it as well, download it (proceeds go to cancer charities), visit Maya’s blog, RockstarRonan.com, donate to the Foundation and help keep Ronan and Ashley’s memories alive.

Their heartache could very easily have been ours. 

Please join me in spreading the word about this global effort to prevent other children and parents from having to experience such devastating pain and loss.

Catherine Anaya anchors CBS 5 News weeknights at 5, 5:30, 6 and 10 pm. She is a mother of two, marathon runner and motivational speaker. Reach her at catherine.anaya@cbs5az.com, connect with her on Facebook, twitter and at CatherineAnaya.com.

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I considered it more a declaration of a desire to be great at something one day. But to her, it was more a declaration of conceit. 

I didn’t get it then. I do now. When my daughter tells me, “YOLO (you only live once), Mom,” it is her reason for why I should buy her this, that or the other. I want to scream (and sometimes do), “What have you actually DONE to deserve it?” 

Don’t get me wrong, she’s wonderful, and I’m very proud of her. But, I wonder sometimes whether in my efforts to give her a life I didn’t have, and to give her the things I only dreamed of, perhaps, I’ve given her too much. Perhaps I’ve convinced her that she is special before she has actually been given the chance to prove how special she is.

That’s the bold message that English teacher, David McCullough, Jr. (son of the famed historian), delivered in his commencement speech at a Massachusetts high school this past June. “You are not special. You are not exceptional,” he told them.

His speech was both criticized and praised for its blunt suggestion that teens today have been “pampered … bubble-wrapped … feted and fawned over” to the point that they have an idea they’re special, when, in reality, “if everyone is special, then no one is. If everyone gets a trophy, trophies become meaningless,” he says.

I read his speech, I watched the video of it and I understood his point. I grew up with adversity. Aside from her parents’ divorce, my daughter hasn’t faced any. As her mom, that’s been my goal. But the more I mature, the more I recognize that my own hunger and desire to accomplish something great with my life actually came from the adversity I faced. I now wonder if I’ve done my girl a disservice by shielding her from it.

I recently attended a convention for journalists and spent an evening huddled with some Latino college and high school students who were there to learn as much as they could about the business they so desperately want to one day make a career. They shared their many challenges, such as having to work on top of their studies to help their family make ends meet. 

They peppered me with questions about breaking into the broadcasting business, while I solicited their suggestions for igniting a fire in my daughter’s belly. Their best advice: continue to set the example and her passion will surface in time. 

I’ll do that with the hope that, along the way, she’ll also realize something else McCullough said in his speech, “The sweetest joys of life, then, come only with the recognition that you’re not special. Because everyone is.”

Catherine Anaya anchors CBS 5 News weeknights at 5, 5:30, 6 and 10 p.m. She is a mother of two, marathon runner and motivational speaker. Reach her at catherine.anaya@cbs5az.com; connect with her on Facebook, twitter and at CatherineAnaya.com.

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That first attempt at food deprivation at age 12 led to years of “yo-yo dieting” that got worse after my freshman year of high school when a classmate told me my hips “looked big” in the jeans I was wearing. They were a size 2! But what I saw in the mirror from that point on was usually about five sizes bigger. That warped perception is what experts call a negative, or distorted, body image, which I admittedly sometimes struggle with even today.

So, it was no surprise to me when new data came out last month showing that 80 percent of all 10-year-old girls have been on at least one diet. 

Research from the National Eating Disorders Association shows 40 to 60 percent of kids between 6 and 12 years old are concerned about their weight or becoming “too fat,” and that 70 percent would prefer to be thinner.

As the mother of a teenage girl, this kind of research concerns me. I’ve long worried about her perception of herself. I want her to have a healthy body image and a healthy relationship with food.

That’s one reason why I went on record a few years back in the local newspaper – even appearing on CNN – to discuss my history of anorexia and what’s known as “exercise bulimia.” 

It wasn’t until I started incorporating weight lifting into my exercise regimen that I understood the difference between being thin and weak and being lean and strong. 

Contrary to what some might think, television has played no role in any negative body image I’ve had. But, I do think that some of the magazines I used to read, such as Seventeen and Teen – with their waif-like and perfectly proportioned models – probably did.

The president of the National Eating Disorders Association says manipulated images contribute to eating disorders, depression and low self-esteem among girls as young as 8 years old.

That’s why I’m encouraged by the promise that Seventeen magazine’s top editor has made to always feature healthy girls and models regardless of clothing size.

When my daughter reads that magazine, I’m confident that it is more for the beauty and fashion tips than any perceived body standard.

Experts believe that parents need to take a more proactive role in a child’s perception of themselves by encouraging them to have healthy relationships with food. 

I’m very mindful of how I treat and talk about food in front of the kids. On the rare occasion when I slip and wonder out loud if I look fat, my daughter will pounce on my poor choice of words. In our house, d-i-e-t is a four letter word.

Catherine Anaya anchors CBS 5 News weeknights at 5, 5:30, 6 & 10pm. She is a mother of two, marathon runner and motivational speaker. Reach her at catherine.anaya@cbs5az.com, connect with her on Facebook, twitter and at CatherineAnaya.com.

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