Aleah Kattan watches new refugee Ruslan lean over her student contest entry of karabij halab, nutty cookies fragrant with hints of orange blossom.

Ruslan nibbles. Smiles.

An Arab proverb fragment (feeding another nourishes two souls) confirms her hope: today’s tasting quickens repair of his heart’s distress.

He reaches for another.

Gary Thomson is himself a descendant of refugees, from the Highland Clearances.