A walk in the wet sand at the beach can demonstrate how the spread footings of a building distribute the loads they carry. It can also show what role water plays in soil. Footprints are made when your body weight presses down and displaces the water in the sand under your feet. This allows the sand beneath your feet to sink. Also, the displaced water increases the moisture content of the sand alongside your footprints. This is why the sand changes color. Your feet are like building footings in the way they affect the soil both directly beneath and alongside of them when they carry weight. Footings, too, affect the soil all around them and the moisture content
