Old Man Takes DNA Test and Finds Sisters He Lost over 70 Years Ago — Story of the Day

An old man decides to take a DNA test out of boredom to learn more about his origins. However, the results come as an absolute shock to him, as they reveal biological connections he lost 70 years ago.

As far as 73-year-old George Nelson could remember, he never had any siblings or relatives and had lived alone almost his whole life. He always thought he was a single child, raised in an orphanage after his parents had died during the war. But as he got older, curiosity got the better of him, and he decided to learn about his origins.

While having tea with his neighbor one morning, he accidentally mentioned this to his friend and next-door neighbor Vic, which brought Geroge across the ancestral DNA testing, thereby putting a partial end to his curiosity.

"An ancestry DNA test?" George asked as he set his teacup down and looked at Vic in surprise. They often enjoyed their morning tea together, discussing politics and sports, but this morning the topic was a little different, thanks to George's curiosity.

"Yeah, George, they say you can trace your ancestors through it. One of my friends did it, and he discovered that his parents were not his biological parents. What a pity... He was quite depressed."

George decided to take a DNA test to learn about his origins. | Source: Shutterstock

"Ahh, Vic, I'm sure nothing like that would happen to me. I was raised in an orphanage all my life, so there's no question about having adoptive parents. However, now that I'm retired and have little to do, I'm merely curious about my roots. Who knows? Maybe I had some relatives who were separated during the war. After all, I was only three years old when it all happened."

"Well, buddy, I hope you don't take anything to heart, even if you come across something shocking."

George laughed. "This old man has had his fill, Vic, so don't be concerned. How does that thing work, by the way?" Vic explained the whole process while George nodded his head, taking a mental note of everything.

That night, after dinner, he opened his laptop and began browsing for a company where he could submit his DNA sample. After hours of research, he ultimately decided on one company, and the next morning, he ordered the DNA test, took the cheek swab, and sent it off.

George was surprised to learn about ancestry DNA tests. | Source: Pexels

George didn't expect much to come out of it, but the field of genetics had always piqued his interest. He was a science professor at a Texas university, and Martha, his first and only love, was a genetics professor. George had been looking forward to when he and Martha would have a large family with several children.

However, things didn't go as planned and Martha left for another country after marrying a businessman. George never forgot her, and he longed for the day when he and Martha could be together again. But fate had other plans for him, and he never married or had children.

Thankfully, his profession came to his rescue, as he immersed himself into it once he realized he wouldn't be able to have the family he desired. But, as he grew older, his sense of loneliness deepened, and no matter how hard he tried to tell himself that there was nothing like that, he knew he had been feeling pretty lonely recently and had thus been interested in learning about his origins.

So, when the DNA test results arrived a month later, he was eager to learn if he had any relatives he wasn't aware of.

He opened the envelope and began reading the first page of the report, which was brimming with information about his ethnic origins, then his gaze was drawn to another section of the report, where he saw the words "49.96 percent match" next to a picture of a woman identified by the company as Samantha Burks, his sister.

George couldn't believe what he was seeing. He was shocked and messaged her immediately through the hereditary website. At first, there were no replies. But George didn't give up and tried to establish contact again, and luckily, this time, he received a response.

George received a reply a week later. | Source: Pexels

"Hey, George!

This is Samantha! Oh my god, I can't believe you chose to take the test at the same company! I hope you'll be free this Sunday at 3? I'm in Florida right now, and I'll be flying to Texas this Sunday…Can't wait to see you. I'll be there at the Starbucks on Preston Road. Still can't believe this is real! See you!"

George dashed over to Vic with the message, and when he saw it, his eyes widened in surprise. "Good Lord, George! So you have a sibling you had no idea about?"

"I know, right? I'm shocked too. We'll be meeting on Sunday. I swear I had no idea I had a sibling all these years. Are you certain these tests are accurate?"

"Well, buddy, this Sunday will be the answer to your questions! Good luck!"

"I hope so, Vic!"

George learned he had a sister. | Source: Pexels

When George arrived at the Starbucks on Preston that Sunday, Samantha was already there.

"Samantha? Hi, this is George!" he said, introducing himself.

The woman looked at him in surprise. "OMG! You look exactly like our father! I can't believe this! You are actually my brother!"

"Ah well…Sorry, I was late."

"Oh no, it's alright. Would you like to order something?"

"No, I'm perfectly alright. I was just wondering... I'm sorry to say this, but I have no recollection of having a sibling."

"Oh dear," Samantha gasped, laughing. "After the war, our house was destroyed, and I believe that's when we were divided and sent to different orphanages. George, my adoptive parents had a picture of our biological parents and you look exactly like our father," she added, holding up her phone to show him a picture. "However, there's something else you should know..."

Samantha was shocked to learn she had a brother. | Source: Pexels

"What exactly do you mean?"

"Well, George, I'm not your only sister," Samantha revealed.

"What?" George froze in shock. "How - How is this…"

"Actually, after my adoptive mother died, my adoptive father told me that I had a twin sister. It happened about 6 months ago. They received a letter from a nurse at the hospital where we were delivered. They, too, had no idea until they received the letter. I had never been interested in finding out about my biological parents, even after knowing I was adopted, but after learning about our sister, I became interested in DNA testing. And I discovered I had a brother as well... I had no idea before you texted me!"

"But where is our other sister?"

Samantha sighed. "Well, there's no news of her yet, but I retook the test with a different company. The results will come soon. Let's see if it yields anything..."

"Oh, God! It still feels so strange. I can't believe it..."

"I understand, George. Me too!"

Samantha revealed she has a twin sister. | Source: Pexels

The rest of the afternoon was spent discussing their lives, with George revealing how he assumed he was a single child and Samantha sharing about her spouse and three girls.

She also suggested planning a gathering so her husband and children could meet George, to which George nodded.

Just before their gathering, Samantha received her DNA test results, which revealed two women, Emma Woods and Ruth Franklin, suspected to be her sisters.

A shocked and surprised Samantha dialed George right away upon seeing the results. "George, you won't believe it, but I just found my twin sister, and that's not all, we have another sister, George. Her name is Ruth!"

"What?" George was taken aback. "This is unbelievable! Jesus Christ! Are you sure the results are accurate?"

"You too, Samantha," George murmured as he hung up the phone, still stunned.

George's parents had 3 daughters. | Source: Pexels

Fortunately, Samantha received a response that evening from Ruth and later that night from Emma, who were both astounded to discover their biological siblings.

Samantha organized a meet-up with them and forwarded the details to George. It turns out Ruth was married with 2 children, and she had stumbled upon the DNA test after seeing a neighbor try it. She said she hadn't really intended on finding any connections but wanted to know about her biological parents as she too knew she was adopted.

Emma said she had found out about the DNA testing after coming across it online, and she took it just for fun. Little did any of them know that fate would bring them back together after separating them 70 years ago. But, as the saying goes, all's well that ends well, and the siblings were overjoyed to be reunited after all these years.

What can we learn from this story?

• Curiosity is the fuel for discovery. George was intrigued about his ancestors, which led him to discover his sisters.
• There's a reason for everything that happens in life. George suddenly got curious to learn about his relatives because he was fated to meet his sisters.

If you enjoyed this story, you might like this one about a man who captured pictures of homeless people for 30 years and found his long-lost mother in one of them.

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