As happened in small towns around the country this year, the event took place in the school parking lot. Parents parked in a circle facing inward and stayed inside the vehicles, while students sat in front of their vehicles.
Their teacher and principal shared remarks, then each student went up separately to collect a sunflower plant for their parents, a houseplant for themselves, a celebratory yard sign (also a "sign" of the times), and a bag with their "diploma," yearbook, t-shirt for the field-day-that-never-was, and candy. A local photographer took portraits in the small park nearby.
That was all very nice, and the most that could be expected given the circumstances, but the best was yet to come. After the ceremony, all of the vehicles paraded out of the parking lot -- under an arch of water created by fire hoses -- and through town with a police and fire escort.
Community members lined the street and cheered on the graduates. It was joyous and heartwarming. Our neighbors Liz, Matt, and Ruby had the biggest sign there, with "Sarah" in two-foot letters. I think she really felt special.
On the way home, we picked up Chinese food for dinner, and Sarah had a chocolate-frosted, sprinkle-drenched donut as a treat for dessert.
It was not the celebration any of us would have pictured even three months ago, but it was special and memorable. I'm sure she'll be talking about it for the rest of her life, which I certainly can't say about my sixth-grade graduation.
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