As long as I have my health, I want to be reporting somewhere.

The line expresses Rather’s self-conception as a reporter first and last: journalism is not merely a job but a vocation he intends to practice for as long as he is physically able. By tying his future to “health,” he frames reporting as an activity requiring stamina, travel, and resilience, and implies that retirement is less a milestone than an interruption. The quote also signals a commitment to being “somewhere”—in the field, close to events—rather than confined to commentary from a distance. In a broader sense, it reflects an ethic of witness: the reporter’s duty is to keep showing up, observing, and telling the public what is happening.