Instructions on Not Giving Up

Limón is known for observing nature with vivid imagistic language and tying it to the human experience. In “Instructions on Not Giving Up,” the poet observes a “crabapple tree” (Line 2) as it flowers in “Spring” (Line 5), producing gaudy blooms. However, as abundant as this blooming seems at first, the poet is struck instead by the subtler process of the “greening of the trees” (Line 5) around it. This natural process seems much more powerful and meaningful. The tree and its “green skin growing over” (Lines 9-10) becomes Limón’s metaphor for appreciating careful resilience over the embrace of mere spectacle.

The poet starts by describing an overwhelmingly conspicuous abundance of blooms. An “almost obscene display of cherry limbs” (Line 3) is on the “crabapple” (Line 2), which belongs to a “neighbor” (Line 2). This type of tree, when it blooms, is soon covered in white or pink flowers depending on the variety of “crabapple” (Line 2) it is. The bright flowers are plentiful on each branch, often too numerous to count. Here, the flowers vary in color from “fuchsia” (Line 1), which is a bright deep pink, to a gentler “cotton candy-colored” (Line 4) hue. It’s a forceful “display” (Line 3) of color, which is heightened by the grey color of the “slate / sky of Spring rains” (Lines 4-5).