The Communal Defrost

Jack frost had paid a call, The morn was all a-glitter. Icicles dangled from frozen gutters, The day was cold and bitter. Greetings of "good morning " Came from here and there As the hardy left their houses, To face the freezing air. I heard familiar sounds Echoing around our street, Neighbours scraping windscreens And stamping frozen feet. Clouds of exhaled breath Rose up to the sky, As if ghostly, silent steam trains Were slowly drifting by. The sound of engines running, As people warmed their cars. It was the communal defrost, Beneath early morning stars.