World Refugee Day (June 20)

In her CNN interview with Anderson Cooper about a plea for support on World Refugee Day, Angelina Jolie got more than a little emotional talking about the children she has met in her work with the United Nations in war-torn areas around the world.

But one boy in particular stuck in her mind. And in ours.

"There was a young boy I met who was about 15 who had been shot in the back and paralyzed. And -- and his whole family had been killed. And he was completely on his own.

"And -- and, yet, he had this really remarkable, unbreakable spirit, a spirit beyond anything I can imagine having. The -- the things we complain about on a daily basis -- he had lost everything, and -- and was just so full of laughter and kindness. And -- and he passed away a few months after I was there.

"So I always wondered -- you know, it's those kind of young people that you meet. And you just think, God, in any other situation, if this person had been given a chance, what an extraordinary adult he would have been. How extraordinary for his country, for his family, if he had ever had a chance to have one. But instead, he had so many horrible things happen to him in his life.

"And -- but he taught me a lot about just the strength, the spirit. I think of him, and I can't complain about anything. I can't -- I can't do anything but be grateful for what I have. Because he was grateful and he had nothing and had suffered everything. So -- and there are millions like him. So there are many, many stories."