Just Hold On One Second

         Over the Summer I read Flight by Sherman Alexie. I thought that it went into some crucial topics about troubled youth. The idea of how Zits goes back in time to see the wrong of his ways, is to me, another way of showing how children learn from their family and are influenced by the past. One central idea of the plot really stood out to me, was how it only took Zits one second to completely turn his mind of thought around.

Zits goes through a lot in the span of one second, more than what is possible in one lifetime. The one second where he disappears from reality to try and find himself in the history of his ancestors. The one second where he stands in a bank full of people with two guns hidden under his coat. The one second which determines whether he shall continue life as a cold blooded murderer, or turn away from a life of crime and hatred.

          That is the value of one second in Flight. It’s not entirely clear what happens in that one second, at first it appears as though Zits is dead, and he is simply traveling through time and space into different people’s lives. However, it’s later revealed, while watching a security tape, that Zits actually did disappear for just one second. Perhaps something actually happened, it didn't just play out in Zits head, perhaps he actually time traveled. This adds a whole other level of complexity to the story, but in the end the only thing that matters is how that travel affected Zits. It was while he traveled through time that he came to the realization of what he thought he had done. All in the span of one second.