(Please see  for current information 
about the original poem that inspired this one.)

FOOTPRINTS
by John T. Baker

Long, long ago in the bloom of my youth
I spoke with the Lord and He taught me His truth;
He offered to help me and serve as my guide,
He promised forever He'd walk by my side.

I trusted the Lord and obeyed His command
And together we've walked 
                  through the years hand in hand;
But I recently had quite a curious dream:
I dreamed I was out on a beach by a stream;

I spotted some footprints etched deep in the sand
Arranged in a pattern as if they'd been planned;
And somehow I knew that those prints were my own -
And there was the proof I had not walked alone!

There were two sets of prints in a matching design,
The second set merging to parallel mine -
Except . . . for one stretch 
                     . . . there was only one pair -
The parallel footprints no longer were there!

Those days, I recalled, were the worst of my life,
I was burdened by cares and surrounded by strife;
So I said to the Lord, "I do not understand
That break in the footprints I see in the sand.

"It was then that I stumbled and strayed from my post
And that was the time when I needed you most."
The Lord sweetly smiled as He said, "That is true . . .
And that was the time I was carrying you."