William Wordsworth described poetry as "the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings: it takes its origin from emotion recollected in tranquility." Seasons Within beautifully embodies that definition. These poems do not arise from fleeting sentiment but from years of observation, introspection, relationships, and reflection. They carry the imprint of a life lived with attentiveness – as a daughter, wife, mother, grandmother, teacher, scientist, and poet. Every page reveals a writer who has learnt not merely to witness life but to contemplate it.

The title itself is a fitting metaphor for the collection's central philosophy. The seasons Prof. Alka Kansra writes about are not those marked by calendars but by the emotional landscapes we inhabit throughout our lives. Childhood and ageing, companionship and solitude, fulfilment and loss, faith and uncertainty emerge as interconnected seasons of the human spirit. Spread across fifty-five poems arranged in six thematic sections, Seasons Within unfolds as an inward journey, inviting readers to recognise fragments of their own lives within its pages.
 

What gives the collection its distinctive voice is Prof. Kansra's rare ability to unite two disciplines often regarded as opposites. A former Head of the Department of Chemistry at MCM DAV College for Women, Chandigarh, she brings to her poetry the precision of a scientist without sacrificing the tenderness of a poet. This synthesis finds its finest expression in "The Inner Lab."  Laboratory processes become metaphors for inner transformation, suggesting that the most meaningful experiments are conducted within oneself rather than inside laboratories.

A continuous process of distillation...
For the effacement of guilt
For the effacement of ego
For the upliftment of the soul.

A similar interplay between science and emotion appears in "Forget Astrology, Forget Science."  While the poem begins with the astronomical conjunction of Venus and the Moon, it soon moves beyond celestial mechanics to explore human companionship and shared warmth.

Peace, serenity,
They touch our souls
Stars reflect
In two pairs of eyes...

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Prof. Alka Kansra writes not only as a poet but also as an educator whose decades in the classroom have shaped her understanding of people. Her vision finds its most eloquent expression in "Chalk in My Hand", undoubtedly one of the most memorable poems in the collection. Although it begins as a familiar classroom scene but gradually it evolves into a meditation on the transformative power of education.
 

Chalk is my chisel,
Young minds, my granite.

The metaphor is striking in its simplicity. Like a sculptor who discovers the figure hidden within stone, the teacher uncovers abilities already present within the student. Education, therefore, is not an act of filling empty minds but of revealing dormant possibilities. In just two lines, the poem captures an entire philosophy of teaching. The poem gains further depth when Prof. Kansra reflects on her years as a chemistry teacher:

Chemistry formulae on the board,
Life stories beyond the classroom.

These lines reveal another dimension of her personality. While scientific concepts formed part of her profession, her real lessons extended beyond the laboratory. Knowledge and values, intellect and empathy, discipline and encouragement become complementary forms of education. The poem reaches its most moving moment when former students return years later:

They entered the portals as young girls,
Now women of the world.

It is an image that every dedicated educator understands. Academic lessons may fade with time, but kindness, patience, and unwavering faith in one's students endure. The poem becomes not only a tribute to teaching but also to the lifelong bonds that education creates. The many dimensions of womanhood find equally graceful expression in "Born Artist." Rather than celebrating artistic achievement in the conventional sense, the poem recognises creativity in the countless roles a woman performs throughout her life. Daughter, wife, mother, teacher, mentor – each identity becomes another brushstroke on the canvas of existence.

Playing multiple roles,
I am a born artist.

The lines are deceptively simple, yet they encapsulate the central insight of the poem: art is not confined to galleries or performances. The teacher emerges as an artist, and the artist as a lifelong learner, revealing that the most enduring masterpieces are often human lives touched with compassion, wisdom, and unwavering faith.

 

As Seasons Within progresses, its gaze turns inward, exploring the relationships that quietly shape human identity. Memory, motherhood, daughterhood, companionship, and even betrayal are not treated as isolated experiences but as interconnected threads in the fabric of life. Prof. Alka Kansra's strength lies in her ability to discover profound emotional truths within familiar domestic moments, revealing that the deepest transformations often occur within the ordinary.
 

One of the collection's most moving poems, "Beginnings and Endings," traces motherhood through a succession of departures – from holding a child's tiny hand on the first day of school to letting that same hand go at the threshold of marriage.
 

I let go of the small hand
That clung to mine so tight...
Another beginning,
Another ending.

The emotional journey naturally extends into "Ma and Marigolds", where the poet returns to her earliest identity – that of a daughter. What begins as a recollection of marigold garlands gradually becomes a meditation on inheritance, tradition, and memory.
 

The first flower, glowing like the sun,
is offered to Lord Ganesha...
Memories threaded through every bloom.

Memory assumes another form in "Brewed Memories," where an evening cup of tea becomes a symbol of companionship cultivated and cherished over decades.
 

Sharing evening tea and snacks...
Together we traverse the seasons of life,
Manoeuvring twists and turns,
Now, playing with grandchildren...

The emotional spectrum broadens further in "Betrayal," one of the collection's most restrained yet powerful poems. Rather than dwelling on dramatic confrontation, the poet examines the emotional aftermath of broken trust with remarkable honesty.

Betrayed...
She's numb,
She's angry,
She feels humiliated.

Yet the poem does not end in despair. By acknowledging pain without allowing it to define the future, it reflects one of the anthology's recurring convictions: healing is neither immediate nor effortless, but it remains possible. In the final movement of Seasons Within, the personal gradually expands into the universal. Nature, spirituality, and the passage of time converge to reveal a poet who finds meaning not in dramatic revelations but in attentive observation. Flowers, rivers, changing seasons, and ageing become companions in an inward journey, gently affirming that life's deepest. wisdom often lies hidden within its simplest moments.
 

This sensibility is beautifully expressed in "I Pause, I Inhale." Rather than presenting nature as a picturesque backdrop, the poem invites readers to become participants in its rhythm. Each season offers a different lesson, encouraging one to slow down and savour the present.
 

I pause, I inhale
The season of bliss
And romance.

A similar spirit animates "At the Ghat," where the ancient city of Varanasi becomes a meeting point of history, faith, and mortality. Echoing Mark Twain's admiration for Banaras, Prof. Kansra captures not merely a place but an enduring civilisational consciousness.
 

The chants begin
The prayers rise
I close my eyes in devotion
Aarti ends.

The awareness of time finds poignant expression in "Reflections of Time." It portrays ageing neither as decline nor as regret but as the graceful accumulation of memories and wisdom.

Time's canvas painted with memories,
Youth's vibrant hues fading slowly,
Lines etched on skin, stories untold,
Grey hair whispering tales of old.

Stylistically, Prof. Kansra favours lucid free verse marked by clarity, restraint, and emotional honesty. She resists elaborate symbolism and rhetorical excess, trusting instead the evocative power of familiar images and everyday experiences. Her poems are accessible without being simplistic, reflective without becoming obscure, and deeply felt without descending into sentimentality. This balance is one of the collection's greatest strengths.

Ultimately, Seasons Within presents Prof. Alka Kansra not merely as a poet, but as a teacher, scientist, daughter, mother, mentor, and reflective seeker whose many identities enrich one another. I take the liberty of giving it the subtitle Science Meets Symphony for it encapsulates the essence of the anthology. The scientist lends precision to observation; the poet transforms that observation into empathy, insight, and beauty. Together, they create a body of work that celebrates the extraordinary experience hidden within ordinary life. Seasons Within is not simply a collection of poems to be read; it is an invitation to look within, to embrace every season of life with grace, and to recognise that the richest journeys are those undertaken in the landscape of the human heart.