How Matt Damon Was Humbled by a 13-Year-Old Girl

By Sukh Singh, Associate Partner, Lighthouse International

What would you do if you had an extra 3 hours spare today?

Would you spend time with your family?

Get that project started (or finished)?

This was the question that actor Matt Damon asked a 13 year old girl in Haiti, after she told him that, thanks to his help through water.org, she didn't have to spend 3 hours walking every day to fetch water for her family. He thought that now, she might finally get the chance to go to school or get her homework done. Her answer totally humbled him...

The young lady turned to Mr Damon, with total clarity and purpose, telling him,

'I'm going to play.'

Matt Damon's seemingly innocent question helped him realise how this young lady cherished something that his daughters and many boys and girls around the world take for granted. But why was he in Haiti in the first place?

How His Mother Opened Up Matt Damon's World

When he was a young boy, Mr Damon's mother took him traveling to South America to see the real world. He saw the world not through a textbook, a class or a TV show, but with his own eyes, ears and heart. As he said himself in the video below,

"They were some of the most instructive and important lessons of my life."

As a result, Mr Damon has, even with his immense success, stayed grounded as a person. He has also discovered an opportunity to help millions of people receive clean drinking water, which is why he works in places like Haiti and India. What's important here is the essence of traveling; opening our eyes to the world around us. Every legend knows how important it is to explore, to discover, to see and experience things that they wouldn't usually do. To listen and hear other people's opinions that they may not agree with. It is a fundamental principle that true legends are instantly recognised by; the principle of humility. In other words, the willingness to learn (and un-learn).

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