Lives of great men all remind us
We can make our lives sublime,
And, departing, leave behind us
Footprints on the sands of time.

(Henry Wadsworth Longfellow)

Maybe its the residue of eternity past, maybe its the fear of insignificance. Whatever the root, leaving a mark on earth’s wall is what we all want to do.

Pictures, awards, documents, journals, relationships, books, sculptures, paintings — these are the ways we try to leave our record for the generations.

It’s more than cosmic graffiti; it’s not just an adolescent reminder that “I was here.” It’s a deep desire to do something that establishes remembrance and significance.

Creating something which takes your breath away is the precursor to wondering how to preserve it, to keep the sands of time from submerging it. We backup our hard drives, save it on a CD, keep carbon copies, store photos in archival quality sleeves, cover artifacts with glass, and do whatever we can to ensure the longevity of our creativity.

We gaze at the pyramids and admire the Pharaohs for thinking up such a testament to their existence. We stare in wonder at the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel and admit Michelangelo painted his way into history. Even busts and death masks of famous people were created so that their likenesses would not be forgotten.

Carving a niche in the tree of time is something not all of us can do. I sometimes wander around in antiques stores. Old family photos fascinate me. I leaf through sepia images of Victorian brides, cherubic children in white dresses, and impressive men in uniform wondering who they were, what tale is behind the picture. These people were important in their realm of life, yet now their photos lie in a musty store waiting for a stranger to buy them for a few dollars.

“He has also set eternity in the hearts of men….” says Ecclesiastes 3:11.

God holds our images and our creativity in eternity’s grasp. Our faces cannot be erased from His memory. Our gifts remind us we are made in His image.

Sand castles wash away. Pictures fade and deteriorate. Books disintegrate with age. Paintings chip and sculptures crack. To leave your footprint on the sands of time is to set your foot where God guides. He knows the way to eternity. And no one is forgotten there.