Experiment--compare with "I Stand"

Reading this, I wasn't quite sure if it was meant to be complex or extremely simple, because I feel it could be either. I really enjoyed the first two lines, because I think the moonlight can be seen as any of those two colours, separating the different night times and the process of light into darkness.

"icy mist, rusted branches,
footsteps in the frost,"

I actually found these two lines to be contrasting, though I have a feeling that's just how my mind interpreted it. To me, the image of "rusted branches" doesn't quite tie in with the cold, wintery theme throughout the rest of the poem. I associated rusty branches more with heat and summer than I do winter. And "footsteps in the frost" just made me think of "footsteps/prints in the sand", because that's the most common saying.

Overall, I was just somewhat confused as to if there's some real story here that I'm not quite grasping, or if it's just an individual standing in icy woodland, waiting, thinking... wishing?