sun’s fingers stretch through
barren trees etching these fine
filigrees of frost
_______
the trees’ shadows shield
the sun’s warm wash etching these
filigrees of frost
I love seeing the patterns the sun creates when it rises upon a frosty morning. Some of the lines where the sun has melted away the frost can be quite sharp and detailed-at least for a while. The sun always has its way in the end, and thank God for that.
I wrote the second haiku to more accurately try to reflect the actual process of etching. The first is a bit more of a metaphorical conceit. It all began with the word frost, which is quite evocative in and of itself. And then came the wonderful “filigree.” Then a little personification for the first haiku and some internet research for the second-and we were in business.
There you go, just in case, you know, you were ever curious about my haiku writing process 🙂 though I don’t always start at the end.
The Dassler Effect 
In response to a friends comment on the second poem on Facebook, I think I have gotten the etching process, exactly backwards! The shielded bits are the parts with are not washed, and so etched, with the “warm wash” of acid.
I don’t know if I have the umph to rework it, though 🙂
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Beautiful haikus, Neil! You’ve really captured the beauty and delicacy of a chilly morning! I know what you mean about frosty mornings, the shadows and patterns are amazing…
Thanks for sharing your haiku writing process, very interesting!
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