A Place at the Table

On Friday, Ivy’s class planned a shared lunch to welcome new students. Everyone was asked to bring a food that mattered to their family. Ivy offered to bring her grandmother’s spinach and feta pies. Her grandmother had taught her to fold the pastry into small triangles, a skill passed down through their Greek-Australian family. At lunchtime, Ivy placed the pies on the table. A student she had not met pointed at them and said, “That looks strange. Why didn’t you bring normal food?” Ivy felt her face grow warm. She nearly put the container away. Then Arjun, who had recently moved from India, stepped beside her. “My family makes food that looks different to some people too,” he said. “It doesn’t make it less normal.” He told the group that his family often cooked lentil dishes together on weekends. Ivy explained that making pies with her grandmother was one way they shared stories and spent time together. Their teacher invited everyone to ask kind questions and listen to the answers. Soon students were swapping stories about recipes, celebrations and the people who had taught them. The student who had made the comment apologised and asked Ivy how to fold the pastry. Ivy showed them. By the end of lunch, the last pie had been shared, and the class had decided to make a collection of family food stories.

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