For nearly two decades I have covered great news stories, happy stories and those that would break your heart. I’ve been there when teams have won state championships and seen elation and been there when family members find out their loved ones were the ones trapped inside the burning home.

If you stay in this business long enough, you will cover the spectrum of emotions and, early on, you must learn how to deal with the emotions you, yourself feel.

As a journalist, your goal is to be objective, reporting the events without emotion, simply reporting the facts. But, as a human being, you feel for the victims of tragedy, you feel for the mother who lost a child and you want to jump up and down alongside the young men or women you’ve covered all season as they celebrate a big win or championship.

Not until recently though did I truly understand some of the emotions felt by some of the subjects I’ve written stories about.

In late February, three young men searching for copper reportedly broke in the home I still owned in Alexander City. They busted through a door, harvested as much copper as they could and then went to leave.

But, before doing so, they set the house on fire to cover their tracts. Because the fire was set so late at night and because the home was located in a rural area, no one noticed the fire until it was too late. By the time fire fighters were able to respond, their main objective was to simply keep the fire from spreading into the nearby woods.

In the ensuing days, I was questioned by police, fire and insurance officials.

About a week or so after the fire, the efforts of the investigators led to the arrest and confessions of the three individuals.

The insurance claims process is continuing and the court system is working through the cases.

I can only thank God no one was hurt, I was insured and those allegedly responsible will be held accountable. I can also be thankful for being given the insight of what being on the other end of the pen is like.

In the end there is no doubt this experience has changed me in many ways, but I hope it makes me more compassionate and understanding in the stories I tell.