When I moved to New England in 1997, I saw myself as a Midwesterner arriving in an unknown area. Twenty years later as I have researched my family history and its roots, I see the parallels with my Puritan ancestors who came to the same area with their version of utopia. Researching the history of those who share my DNA, I feel as if I am reaching back in time to discover their lives and histories. At the same time, I feel that they were reaching into the unknown future when they were leaving records, archives, and artifacts to be rediscovered at some undetermined future time. I am blessed and grateful that so many before me have done the immense amount of work creating these histories. Visiting the sites where they lived or worked centuries ago, I am moved to see the same sky, or the same ocean as they looked out on, and I strive to capture some of their essence that they have left behind.