FOOTPRINTS IN THE SAND

One night I dreamed I was walking along the beach with the Lord. Many scenes from my life flashed across the sky. In each scene I noticed footprints in the sand. Sometimes there were two sets of footprints. Other times there were one set of footprints. This bothered me because I noticed that during the low periods of my life when I was suffering from anguish, sorrow, or defeat, I could see only one set of footprints, so I said to the Lord, "You promised me, Lord, that if I followed you, you would walk with me always. But I noticed that during the most trying periods of my life there have only been one set of prints in the sand. Why, When I have needed you most, you have not been there for me?"

The Lord replied,

"The times when you have seen only one set of footprints is when I carried you."

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These are the authentic words that were written by Mary Stevenson during the winter of 1936 and obtained from her handwritten 1939 FOOTPRINTS original.

In 1936, 14 year-old Mary Stevenson wrote the poem FOOTPRINTS IN THE SAND saying that God gave her the words while she just pushed the pencil. From that day on, Mary gave hand-written copies of this poem to friends, relatives and strangers.

This poem was copied and given to thousands of other people like a great chain letter.

In December of 1984 Mary followed the advice of her friend Kathy Bee and applied for & received a copyright on Footprints In The Sand from the U.S. Copyright Office.

In 1987, Margaret Fishback Powers, received a U.S. copyright on her works entitled Heart To Heart. She claimed that her poem I Had A Dream AKA (Footprints) was the original Footprints In The Sand that she wrote in October of 1964 and that her original was lost during a move in 1980.

In 1997, Kathy Bee contacted one of the Nation's Top Forensic Scientist Kurt Schwalbe. He thoroughly examined Mary Stevenson's 1939 poem, took samples of her hand writing, and along with other staff members concluded that "MARY STEVENSON'S (Zangare) 1939 copy is AUTHENTIC!!!!!