'Be the heroes you're looking for'

MOSES LAKE — Aric Bostick told the graduating seniors of Moses Lake High School that it is important to dream big.

“I’m not that special and I’m not that smart but I dream big,” Bostick said during a special assembly Wednesday morning for the school’s 2018 graduating class.

Bostick, a former high school teacher and coach who has been a motivational speaker for the last 18 years, reminded the students that they are smart enough, good enough, and they have what it takes to achieve their dreams.

“If you want something in your life, you’ve got to get over the part of you that says you can’t,” he said.

It was all part of the Senior Walk of Fame organized by Irina Shaporda, who manages the state’s Gear Up program at MLHS. Gear Up is a state program that prepares students “to enter and complete the postsecondary program or institution of their choice,” according to the Gear Up Washington website.

“We do this to celebrate their futures!” Shaporda said. “We’ve followed these kids since they were in the sixth grade, and now we send them on their way.”

Bostick, who first appeared in a dark blue blazer, light blue shirt and orange tie, slipped those off to reveal his “superhero” costume, complete with orange cape.

“Loosen up, show up, and stop looking for heroes and be one yourself,” he told the students.

Bostick, who described himself as the first in his family to go to colleges, said he became a teacher and a speaker to help the kids who are like he was in high school — “lost, lonely, afraid.”

“I saw the need for students everywhere to focus on dreams and goals, but deeper than that, to look at what’s holding you back. Because for many, the script they’ve written already limits themselves,” he told the Columbia Basin Herald.

The 43-year-old Bostick said he speaks at anywhere from 75 to 100 events a year, and strives to help “educators, students and parent to connect with a purpose.”

Which is the message the Austin, Texas -native wanted to impart to the graduating seniors as well. Take risks, care for others and don’t let your past define who you are, because your life is not just about you, he said.

“I’m not so worried about your past, I’m worried about your present. Because I can see what your future can be if you show up for it,” he told the students as part of a story about being late for basketball practice in the ninth grade.

Life is tough enough, and will continue even after graduation, without us making things harder for ourselves, Bostick said.

“This is life,” he said. “How you live it is up to you.”

Charles H. Featherstone can be reached via email at countygvt@columbiabasinherald.com.