Denzel Washington took the stage at Dillard University in 2015 to deliver the commencement speech. And instead of talking about success, he spoke about his mother.
He said that, after becoming famous, he told her that he had achieved everything on his own. She stopped him immediately: she reminded him of the prayers, the blessed robes, the holy water she would sprinkle on him to protect him. That was when the actor understood something he wanted to leave with the graduates: no one gets anywhere without help.
The actor, winner of two Oscars and three Golden Globes, closed with a message that sounded more like a confession than a speech: everything he has is a gift, not something he earned on his own. And staying true to that idea is what has kept him grounded throughout his career.