Food can be a delicious way to connect

On the last evening of my mom's most recent trip to visit me in London, she sat across the table pealing pomegranate seeds into a big bowl.

"Eat this tomorrow after I'm gone, you lazy bee," she teased, dismissing the piles of books, clothes and electronics across the table waiting to be packed into her luggage.

Mom knows me too well: pomegranate seeds are my favorite. They never appear on my food schedule though, as I lack the patience to peal them properly.