I've known what it's like to survive without a steady job. Growing up in the Philippines, I watched my parents juggle part-time jobs at the corner shop and as tailors, barely able to make ends meet for my three brothers and me.

The Journey guys were so warm and friendly. I'm learning a lot from them.

I try to avoid gaining weight as much as possible because it hinders my performance onstage. Touring demands so much energy.

I have a foundation where it caters to street children and entices them to go back to school. The street is not a good school for them. They need to go to a proper school.

I made the choice not to have children, so I can spend my days just writing; there are no kids demanding my time.

My family's story isn't special. What's special is the America that makes our story possible. Ours is a nation like no other, a place where great journeys can be made in a single generation. No matter who you are or where you come from, the path is always forward.

My parents met at Fort Riley, Kan., during World War II. My father was an Army civilian; he had been trampled by a horse in his youth and couldn't enlist. My mother was studying to be a nurse and, when war broke out, joined the Women's Army Corps without even telling her parents.

Having grown up on a family farm, I am all too familiar with the effects a drought can have on a crop.