Footprints in the Sand

I recently read a poem called Footprints in the Sand by Mary Stevenson. The poem is about a man or woman (doesn’t specifically name) who is reminiscing about her past. She/he asks God why she/he was left to suffer. The poem doesn’t rhyme but it has a lot of meaning in it. The mood is inspiring especially at the end.   

Mary Stevenson was born November 8, 1922 in Chester, Philadelphia. She had written Footprints in the Sand during her teen years and was only able to prove it was hers in the 1950s. Read more about it on the Official website: Here. You can read the poem on the site as well.I think in the first stanza “One night I dreamed I was walking along the beach with the lord, scenes of my life flashed across the sky, In each scene I noticed a set of footprints” could mean that she is thinking back on her life and noticing the ups and downs. Like  she would look up at the sky and just reminisce about the things she had done did.She also feels neglected and alone during the times she need someone. Asking God as to why she was left to suffer when she said she would follow Him. When she says “The Lord replied The times when you have seen only one set of footprints is when I carried you” means that God was there the whole time through all her hardships. God carried her burdens and helped her through the worst. Carrying her burdens when she felt alone and saw only one set of footprints. I think the author is trying to say that God will always be there,  when she says “the times when you have seen only one set of footprints is when I carried you.”  I think the poem makes me feel as if there will always be somebody there to carry me through hardships.