Does the nun know? (Convents supplemented their incomes by lace making, such as the Poor Clares in Kenmare, Co. Kerry, Ireland)   Does the nun know as she twists Bleached cotton to and fro Sturdy fingers moving bobbins With such steady precision, Pinning her lace fast To a small pillow placed Soft upon her flattened knees.   Is there a glimmer of understanding How her lace scallops delicate As a sea creature’s empty shell Stranded on a frothy tide, Will be sewn around the silken edge Of another woman’s bed-pillow To spread her hair just so?   How that other…