19th April, 2007

JANET CAMILLERI

Such a beautiful poem, yet it has become the subject of such a bitter fight. Although many have stepped forward to claim authorship of the Footprints poem that has inspired millions across the world, there are three major contenders: Carolyn Carty, Margaret Fishback Powers, and Mary Stevenson.

WHOSE FOOTPRINTS?: It's an image that decorates walls in homes around the world. Yet who first penned the work known as Footprints? PICTURE: Marcio Luiz Ingenito (www.sxc.hu)

CAROLYN CARTY
Carolyn Carty says that she wrote the Footprints poem in 1963, while grieving the death of her grandfather. She was just six-years-old. Although this seems an amazing feat, Carty was quick to point out that she was able to read and write fluently from four-years-old, and comes from a long line of teachers and preachers. She was inspired by a poem written by her grandmother, as well as Longfellow’s poem A Psalm of Life and John F. Kennedy’s immortal words: "Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country".

Originally content to stay out of the limelight, Carty became so outraged when others began to claim authorship and cash-in on her work that she decided to come forward. “It is hard to be noble in this situation,” she told me. "It only came to my attention in May 2003 that others were not only claiming authorship, but were collecting money that does not belong to them."

"None of the proceeds from my poem are out there generating good...it was intended for the Christian communities and other well deserving organisations."

Footprints in the Sand, Special Collector's Edition by Carolyn J. Carty, is published by Authorship House (not available in Australia).

MARGARET FISHBACK POWERS
Powers was a young woman considering a marriage proposal, full of hopes - and doubts - for the future, when she clams to have written Footprints in 1964. Several years later, the family shifted house and a box of important paperwork (which contained the original Footprints manuscript) was lost forever. In the 1980s, the legendary verse began appearing on everything from greeting cards to tea towels, but it was credited to “author unknown”, much to Powers' shock. Her quest to prove her claim was strengthened, when she realised that the poem was recorded in her 1965 wedding album. Powers thought long and hard about pursuing the matter through legal channels, but felt that this was not the Lord's will.

Footprints, the True Story Behind the Poem that Inspired Millions by Margaret Fishback Powers, is published by Harper Collins.

MARY STEVENSON
The story goes that Mary Stevenson wrote Footprints as a 14-year-old. A victim of childhood abuse and neglect, Stevenson apparently wrote the poem one freezing night while locked out of the house. Stevenson went on to become a dancer at a nightclub in Philadelphia, and wrote many copies of Footprints for the other performers. As a young woman, she had no idea about copyright laws or making a profit from her work. Footprints was just one of hundreds of poems that she wrote during her lifetime. One, about child abuse, was set to music by a woman called Kathy B. Hampton and won Song of the Year from the California Country Music Association in 1986. Proceeds went to child abuse agencies.

Stevenson first met Hampton in 1979 at a nightclub in Hollywood. As their friendship grew, Stevenson loaned Hampton a dated copy of the poem. Despite its age and frailty, the document is clearly signed “Mary Stevenson, 1939”. After Stevenson's death in 1999, Hampton’s handwritten copy was confirmed by experts to be the "real thing" - whether this indicates that the paper is old, or the writing itself dates back to the 1930's - is unclear.

Footprints in the Sand - The Life Story of Mary Stevenson, Author of the Immortal Poem by Gail Brewer Giorgio, is published by Gold Leaf Press (not available in Australia).

WILL THE REAL AUTHOR PLEASE STAND UP?
So who is telling the truth? It is quite possible that they ALL are. God is quite capable of giving the same - or very similar - poem to three separate people. Carolyn Carty’s and Margaret Fishback Powers’ versions differ by only 20 words! As a writer myself, I know that it is not unusual to have an idea for an article or story - only to see that somebody else has already written it. There is no copyright on ideas or even titles, only on the exact wording.

In my mind, it is clear that the real author is God Himself. His purpose was that the message of the Footprints poem be spread as far as possible, and He ensured this by giving the words to three different women.

Janet Camilleri is the editor of Footprints magazine for Australian Christian women - www.footprintsaustralia.com.
This is an edited version of an article that appeared in the Autumn 2006 edition of Footprints magazine.

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