"Above all, she was very clear that nothing would mean anything if I didn't live a life of use to others. And I didn't know what that meant for a long time. [...] It was only when I began to travel and look and live beyond my home that I understand my responsibility to others."That quote is from Angelina Jolie, quoting her mother, Marcheline Bertrand, in a brief but moving speech she gave last Saturday night when she accepted the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award at the 2013 Governors Awards. Jolie was full of grace and thanks as she paid tribute to her late mother.
Jolie has been involved in many humanitarian projects for many years, but it was especially touching to see her son Maddox in the audience in a tux, able to be as proud of his mom as she knew her mom would have been of her efforts.
I'm a long time Angelina fan, but was very impressed by her comparison of her life and that of a woman capable of "making a better speech" who spends her life in a refugee camp. To get a sense of how she tries to deal with the disconnect between her privileged Hollywood lifestyle and upbringing and how she is trying hard to give back, I recommend checking out her journals, of some of her travels to refugee camps in the Sudan, Jordan, Kosovo and many other places, in her role as a Goodwill ambassador for the UN.
Keep up the good work, Angelina.
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