I can’t stop Thinking about a Family Forest® connection service I recently completed for a young lady from California. It was memorable to me for several reasons, including starting with so little, and accomplishing so much.

The most Inspirational part for me is thinking about the spirit of one of Marsia’s ancestors, one of her 7^th-great-grandfathers, with the unusual surname of Brothwell. Joseph was a soldier from Yorkshire, England. I found a story about him on page 1,350 of A History of the Old Town of Stratford and the City of Bridgeport Connecticut, by Rev. Samuel Orcutt, published in 1886.

More than two Centuries Ago, Joseph jumped ship in the West Indies, and swam six Miles to shore! Then he somehow came to New York, then moved on to Black Rock, in Fairfield, CT, and made his home there at what is now called Stratfield.

Forty-some years later, I still remember sailing due west into the Gulf of Mexico from Longboat Key, FL in a 15′ Venture Cat. It sat very close to waterlevel. At probably about a mile out, I looked back and the shoreline had almost disappeared. It was scary.

What would it have been like if I had continued sailing toward Texas for about five more miles, then jumped off, and tried swimming back to shore? And done it more than two centuries ago, when there were more and bigger creatures in the sea?

What did life look like through Joseph Brothwell’s eyes? What was he thinking while he was very vulnerable in the midst of the perils of the sea, with miles still left to swim?

How inspirational might it be to a college-bound young lady to discover that she carries the genes of this spirited and determined adventurer?

How many motivational stories about your own ancestors are squirreled-away in the nooks and crannies of recorded history, waiting to be discovered?

Maybe the beginning of a new year is the perfect time for you to consider giving us the opportunity to utilize the Family Forest® to lead your family to one or more of those stories.