Perhaps the most trying, difficult, and unexpected school year in recent history culminated with a graduation ceremony that was equally unprecedented. As Guilford High School (GHS) seniors and their families paraded through the town center and gathered in a strange throng of painted, streamer-coated cars at the fairground, there was a palpable sense of triumph, having overcome the challenges of this school year.

Since the coronavirus pandemic shuttered Guilford’s schools on March 13, students have had to adapt to an entirely new normal of quarantining and remote learning. While continued health restrictions prevented the kind of cathartic, carefree celebration many were hoping for, the GHS graduates, faculty, and family members took active part in a drive-up ceremony that still allowed for a little pomp and circumstance.

An almost hour-long procession that had residents along the street clapping and ringing cowbells and graduates hanging out of sunroofs or reclining in the backs of trucks, cringing as friends or family members held up giant cut-outs of their faces showed just how strange and unique these last few months have been for the students.

In his speech to his classmates, Valedictorian Ben Crair said that the end of the Class of 2020’s school careers “has been nothing but disappointing.”

“To put it bluntly, this sucks,” Crair said, to a round of honks and cheers.

But Crair went on to urge his classmates to have some perspectives and realize the suffering of the pandemic has affected many people on a much greater scale. Something as large and difficult as this is not helped by dwelling on the “what-ifs,” he said.

“We are here as living proof of the resiliency of the Class of 2020,” Crair said. “We are not here to mourn, we are here to celebrate.”

Having lost out on many of the traditions of high school seniors, including prom and a senior trip, the focus of the speakers was not on the past, or memories of better times, but instead on the future.

Salutatorian Ella Stanley opened her speech by pointing out that most people “reminiscence about the past through a rose-tinted lens.” Rather than do that, Stanley said she wanted to focus on difficulties, struggles, and failures—things that push people to reach out, try harder, and trust.

“I know for experience the universe laughs when we make premature plans for exactly how we want our lives to go. Failure is inevitable,” she said.

What this year’s graduates must learn is to “persist through fear,” Stanley said, and know that their failures are evidence of perseverance—that looking back on struggles and shortcomings will remind them of how much they have already overcome.

“You can continue striving,” she said.

That practice of looking ahead—not just for the better times, but toward future struggles—pervaded the crowd in Guilford this year. While many students mingled and took photos (with various levels of adherence to social distancing), others sat on the roofs of their cars, arms clasped around their knees, staring out toward the horizon.

While the challenges ahead might be especially daunting, not just for recent graduates, but for everyone, after what they have already been through, there’s reason to believe the members of the Class of 2020 are up to the task.