L. Frank Baum’s ‘The Capture of Father Time’

One young cowboy lassoed more than he reckoned for and engaged in some mischief.

One young cowboy got more than than bargained for when he lassoed Father Time. Osetrik/Shutterstock

Do you ever wish you could stop time, that ever-running, ever-stalking adversary in your life? Yet perhaps it is not an adversary, but a sage old friend, who teaches you many lessons.

In his short story “The Capture of Father Time,” L. Frank Baum shows Time as a necessity, rather than an adversary. For when Jim accidentally captures Father Time and freezes the world, Jim learns a valuable lesson. As time carries you from beginning to end, it also brings unpredictable people, places, and things into your life, reducing dreariness and the unpleasant.

Cowboy Out East

Jim, a 12 year-old cowboy from Arizona, visits his Uncle Charles back East. At first, he preoccupies himself with entertaining his cousins with his lasso tricks, but soon grows tired of it.