We all have awkward moments in school. But we don’t all manage to salvage them…in a video that goes viral.

A clip from Eisenhower Junior High School has people cracking up. In it, the school band was kicking off an event with a rendition of The Star-Spangled Banner.

As the song swelled and the percussionists gave it their all, a disaster occurred.

The strap on one cymbal broke, sending the instrument crashing to the floor and shocking the percussionist.

For just a moment, he stared in disbelief at the floor. He wasn’t able to play with just one cymbal. He had no idea what to do for the rest of the song. So, he made a decision that has people on the internet applauding. He turned and silently saluted the flag.

His fellow percussionists noticed the problem.

One of them burst out laughing. The other continued playing without breaking his expression. There the cymbalist stayed, not moving until the song reached its conclusion.

Chuckles ran through the audience, but people were actually impressed. The video was uploaded to the internet. There, people fell in love with the student’s creativity and quick thinking.

“Congrats kid, you handled that like a boss!” said one commenter. “All performers have moments like this. All that matters is how you handle it.”

The performance continued without further incident.

But now the cymbalist has gone down in history — not just on the internet, but also at his own school.

“I’m in band with this kid,” said one commenter. “His name is Andrew and he is a Sophomore now. But everybody calls him Hollywood now because of this moment [sic].”

Kudos to Andrew for recovering so well.

He earned his reputation!

“Dude was like a robot, analyzed situation, executed proper measures to keep the bad ass level that is a 10/10 when one is playing the symbols [sic],” said one commenter. “Kid turned up to 11.”

It’s hard to imagine what most of us would do under similar pressure.

But it’s safe to say we wouldn’t all be as quick on our feet as this young man.

“What a brilliant kid,” said one commenter. “I laughed at his reaction but man was he smooth. I can watch this over and over…this kid will go far in life. Quick thinking. I cant get over it [sic].”

Meanwhile, some people pointed out the other percussionists.

The student on the big drum couldn’t contain her laughter. But the student on the snare drum almost didn’t react. The internet found that almost as hysterical as the cymbalist.

“Perfect trio: the girl looks in a surprise and then starts laughing [sic],” said one commenter. “The boy in the middle looks down and the continues like nothing happened…and the legend himself salutes”

There’s no doubt the band has its fair share of cool-headed students. While there’s no update on where those students are today, with their skills, they’re sure to go far in life.

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Source: Shareably, YouTube