Ryan Reynolds gives virtual commencement speech for his old Vancouver high school

Ryan Reynolds is totally winning at self-isolation. In between raising money for foodbanks, healthcare workers and bartenders, visiting children’s hospitals, and trolling Blake Lively’s mom (and obviously Hugh Jackman), the VanCity actor also took the time recently to make sure the graduates at his former high school are feeling taken care of too. And what better way to lift some graduating spirits that with a virtual commencement speech from Deadpool himself?The 43-year-old addressed the students at Kitsilano Secondary School in Vancouver with a YouTube speech on May 1, in which he talked about the times he used to roam those halls, how he’s still friends with so many of the kids that he’s graduated with (including one of their current teachers), and how he’s found that having compassion right now is the thing that’s getting him by. “Now, I'm probably not going to drop any mics here... but I can pass on this one little chestnut of wisdom,” Reynolds said in the video. “Something that you might want to start if you're not already doing it. Totally up to you, no pressure, but one thing that's worked for me is practicing some form of compassion every day, whether it’s for yourself or someone else, especially for someone else, is good.” Considering how much money Reynolds and Lively have been giving towards charities and people in need of help during the pandemic, he’s certainly practicing what he preaches."You've heard the expression 'divide and conquer,' you see it everywhere and dividing people is just a means to distract them, disarm them, whereby giving one an opportunity to conquer, and the world seems to subsist on this idea more and more and more. And it's getting really f------ boring," he continued. "It's just overdone and I think that you guys want to be stylish and ahead of the curve. And I believe that your generation will be. So maybe practice the opposite, practice empathy."The actor went on to joke that empathy is what saved him after the release of Green Lantern, before turning serious again and revealing that in his mind it’s also a radical act of ambition. One that’s given him money, friends and priceless memories, thank you very much. “It's allowed me to fully accept and provide love. It's helped me recognize the mistakes I've made and learn from them. Above all it made me happy," he added. "It's something I'll probably be working on my whole life."While the students, who were originally supposed to celebrate their grad in June, begin to work on their own best empathetic selves following that commencement speech, Reynolds wanted to be sure they’d also be well nourished. And so he called up one of his favourite local pizza joints, Nat’s pizza, and distributed 385 gift cards so that each student could receive a free large pizza on him. Obviously Reynolds gets it. A commencement speech is inspiring, but the memory of a free pizza from a celebrity is a memory for life.[video_embed id='-1']Before you go: Ryan Reynolds reveals being Canadian is his ‘greatest asset’[/video_embed]