VALENTINE’ S
A UNIQUE VALENTINE’ S DAY GIFT:
LIVING DNA
IF YOU’ RE BORED OF THE SAME OLD FLOWERS AND CHOCOLATE FOR VALENTINE’ S DAY AND YOU WANT TO GIVE – OR RECEIVE – SOMETHING A LITTLE MORE INTERESTING, AND A LOT MORE MEANINGFUL, A DNA KIT FROM LIVING DNA COULD BE EXACTLY THE THING YOU ARE LOOKING FOR. THIS SIMPLE KIT( IT JUST TAKES A SWAB FROM THE INSIDE OF YOUR CHEEK TO SEND AWAY FOR ANALYSIS AND YOU’ RE DONE) CAN GIVE YOU INFORMATION ABOUT WHERE YOU CAME FROM AND WHAT YOUR LONG AGO ANCESTORS WERE REALLY LIKE. BY SARAH GREEN
In fact, the testing can specifically pinpoint family roots that go back to at least five, if not six, generations, and it can give you some fascinating insight and clues into how your forebears migrated across continents and how they connect to you, right here, right now, in the present day.
It’ s fairly mind-blowing.
As Valentine’ s gifts go, getting a full breakdown of your genealogical ancestry and being able to make a good start on a family tree project is up there with both the most unique yet the most thoughtful presents you can think of. And if you and your partner take part together, your family tree will become even more leafy, with branches taking you to places you may never have expected. It might not be what you would call traditionally romantic, but comparing results with your other half makes for one fantastic date night.
Taking the swab is the easy part( and there are full instructions on exactly how to do it so that there is no confusion or contamination involved). The waiting for the results, however … that’ s hard. You’ ll be brimming over with anticipation, and it’ s especially exciting if you’ ve already begun your family tree and you want to make sure you’ re on the right track. I have to say, by the time our results arrived( only about 5 weeks later, but it can take up to 12), the thrill was almost palpable, and it made finding out the answers all the sweeter.
And they were answers. This was not just some vague idea of where people I’ d never met may or may not have been born and raised, and where they could possibly have travelled to. There were percentages – high ones – that told me precisely how much chance there was that the results were accurate. It meant that I could continue my research, discover more about a side of the family I had never known about before, and, when I looked in the mirror, was it possible that I could spot a glimpse of those people, and that time, and that place?
What’ s really different about Living DNA compared to other DNA testing companies is that you don’ t just get a breakdown of roughly where in the world your genes stem from; you actually get a rather in-depth breakdown of where within the specific country of your origin you come from as well. If the country of origin is the UK, for example, you’ ll find out where within the UK, down to one of 21 different regions. It makes tracking down the broken twigs of your family tree much easier.
Although it costs extra, ordering the bespoke coffee table book that details all of your results is a nice option, and for Valentine’ s gifts it ticks all the boxes. Discovering where your DNA comes from is only the beginning of finding out more about yourself; it seems there is always more to learn.
www. livingdna. com
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