Flight Patterns by Sherman Alexie attempts to tackle a challenging topic. He probes the underbelly of modern life, sifting through the murky American mind filled with seemingly useless information, searching for what is truly important in life. This happens through the two main scenes of the story. The first describes William's relationship with his daughter and wife and conflicts in life. The second involves William in a taxi conversation that changes his priorities and forces him to face his problem. This pushes him to the tipping point, and when the journey ends, he feels uncomfortable and only cares about hearing the voice of his family, not his job or the fears that had previously been the driving forces. Alexie is trying to show that temporary worries should never come before something like family, something that will remain permanent. When William wakes up at 5:05 am, the reader is formally introduced to his mind. All the random information he freely associates is there simply because he wants it to be. The information comes at such a low cost that he can know the Declaration of Independence by heart and not have to choose between his favorite bands, but just decide which to listen to first. While this wealth of information may seem like a benefit to some, it takes up space that could be used for more important things. And because it is not used correctly, William is full of fears and conflicts. This is scattered throughout the story. The word fear is mentioned five times, fear and terrorist are both mentioned six times, and terror is mentioned three. William doesn't want to leave his wife, "but he loves his job" (p. 428). He's not sure he's a good father. While he is away, his daughter draws p...... in the center of a paper ...... worried that his wife and daughter were injured and lying dead on the floor, but then Marie responded. “Hi, William,” he said said. “I am here,” he said (page 438). William was finally able to see clearly what was important. It wasn't his job that allowed him to think creatively or know the Declaration of Independence by heart. He no longer cared about the labels he was given, people could call him a terrorist for all they cared. What he feared in the past was now his ammunition to get exactly what he wanted: a straight shot at a pay phone to hear his family's voice, the chance to correct the physics of his daughter's photos and let his daughter know wife that she came before his work. Alexi has successfully shown us how to lighten the burden of trivial problems, allowing us to focus more quickly on the things we need most.