The olive harvest is one of the great calendars of Palestinian life. Families gather around trees, cloth is spread beneath branches, and the work of picking becomes a shared memory before it becomes oil.
Fresh oil changes the kitchen. It is greener, sharper, and more alive than the bottle waiting in the cabinet. Musakhan belongs to this moment because it gives the oil a stage: bread to absorb it, onions to sweeten it, sumac to brighten it, and chicken to carry it to the table.