by Dorothy Lander
One hundred and seventy civilians, mostly schoolchildren, in southern Iran will never eat another morsel of food.
The deadly bombing of a primary school in Minab in southern Iran by the United States Military Tomahawk missiles—twice so no accident— on February 28, 2026, swept me back to our Antigonish-based book launch this summer past of Creating in Dangerous Times, with author Celeste Nazeli Snowber.
A Mother’s Milk
A century earlier (1915), this same author’s mother survived the Armenian genocide and Celeste Nazeli Snowber’s earlier poetry collection The Marrow of Longing (2021) is replete with food stories. Knowing that Iran and Armenia shared a border, I approached the Iranian mother and daughter team —Jebel and Afshan of Sour Cherry Bakery, an Antigonish-based Persian bakery with a weekly presence at the Antigonish Farmers Market, to cater to the book launch with an Armenian flavour. I presented Afshan with a copy to The Marrow of Longing. In turn, the chefs offered a history lesson and a varied choice of delicious menu items.
Food as Cultural Bridge
During the Armenian genocide of 1915, many Armenians fled across the border into Iran, where they found relative safety and were able to settle. Iran already had an established Armenian community, but this wave of refugees allowed Armenians to create their own churches, districts, and schools, maintaining language, traditions, and cultural practices while sharing some aspects with Persian society. Dishes like dolma, boreg, lavash, and gata became cherished in both Armenian and Iranian cuisine — food served as a bridge between the communities.
This cultural overlap feels especially meaningful for Celeste’s book launch, which celebrates healing, sanctuary, and resilience. Sharing these traditional foods allows guests to experience the history and connection of two cultures that, like the themes in the book, have endured hardship and found ways to thrive.
Food as Poetry: A Healing Art
Afshan noted several Armenian foods mentioned throughout Celeste Nazeli Snowber’s 2021 HARP publication of The Marrow of Longing.
Grape leaf dolma (vegetarian): rice and herbs wrapped in grape leaves
Boreg: flaky pastry filled with cheese
Lahmajoon: flatbread topped with ground beef
Gata bread: a slightly sweet bread, often served as dessert
Lavash bread: thin, traditional bread, also common in Iranian cuisine, perfect with dips
Baba ghanoush: roasted eggplant dip
Raisin & peanut snack
Food as Story
Just as concerns of food security rise around the globe, many argue Israel has weaponized starvation in the Gaza genocide, Celeste Snowber’s poem Beneath the Skin of Plum Black serves as a compelling backdrop to this imposed misery:
Aromas took a second place
to hues of dark purple
it was your colours
my mother was
in love with.
Second-generation creativity
close to the bone
color is the heart
of my home
hidden in the eggplant
and hidden in life
My mother had a
eggplant soul
a beauty of both
rough and tender
dark and light
yellow white flesh
Encased in mauves
The meeting of art and life
just beneath the
skin of plum black.
No Pallet Cleanser for Colonialism
And now I’m left to wonder, while the US-Israeli missiles kill civilians in the thousands in the Middle East… will Iranian refugees a century later flee to Armenia? And what bread will be broken at those tables?
From Mi’kma’ki’s borders to those in the Middle East, we at HARP wish peace—including food security— upon and throughout your unceded territories.
