My Family Secret
A few years ago, I took a genetic test with 23andMe. It was part of my routine medical exam. I was forty-eight and in excellent health. But recent deaths from cancer in my immediate family prompted me to look deeper into my genetics. Aside from three pregnancies, I hadn’t gone to the doctor in years. Preventative health screening, as my doctor called it.
Then I got the results.
It was not what I expected — not a trace of Russian Jewish ancestry, but lots of Scottish, Irish, and Italian instead. A week later, a 23andMe first cousin emailed me asking how we’re related. As first cousins, you must share a lot of genetic code (and a set of grandparents).
This cousin’s last name begins with a B.
I was given the last name Brown on my birth certificate, but after my parents divorced, I used my mother’s maiden name, Kordan, instead. To find out about this first cousin I wasn’t aware of, I called one of my known first cousins on the Brown side of the family. As I scrolled through the 23andMe cousins, I felt like was playing Scrabble with last names. There’s B for this mystery cousin. It could spell out B-R-O-W-N, but it might not go in the direction I am searching for.
When you’ve spread out one of those complicated jigsaw puzzles on the table, you wonder how you’ll ever put it all together. It can take hours, sometimes…
