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Writer's pictureIPM Team
May 161 min read

Instructions on Not Giving Up | Ada Limón


A photo of a human hand under a light green leaf with very distinct veins. The background is out of focus and dark green. A poem by the current Poet Laureate of the United States, Ada Limón titled "Instructions on Not Giving Up" that reads: "More than the fuchsia funnels breaking out / of the crabapple tree, more than the neighor's / almost obscene display of cherry limbs shoving / their cotton candy-colored blossoms to the slate / sky of Spring rains, it's the greening of the trees / that really gets to me. When all the shock of white / and taffy, the world's baubles and trinkets, leave / the pavement strewn with the confetti of aftermath, / growing over whatever winter did to us, a return / to the strange idea of continuous living despite / the mess of us, the hurt, the empty. Fine then, / I'll take it, the tree seems to say, a new slick lear / unfurling like a fist to an open palm, I'll take it all."

We greatly appreciate this poem by the current

Poet Laureate of the United States, Ada Limón.


If a line or phrase resonates with you,

we invite you to use it as a starting point to create your own poem.


We welcome you to share your poem with the IPM community here.


This poem was included in IPM's May Newsletter.

Access the full Newsletter here.

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