Even a humble society’s nod
Feels heavier than empty praise elsewhere.

Validation is no vanity,
But a mirror showing
Our efforts have touched real lives.

Through 7 Seconds, I foresaw my own triumph,
After surviving the coma’s shadow.
Yes, I'm worldly successful.
I've a fine second job,
Previously, a Probationary Officer
With the State Bank of India,
Now I'm a Group-B Gazetted Officer
Working as an Assistant Audit Officer,
With the Office of Director General of Audit,
North Eastern Railway HQ, Gorakhpur
Assigned by the Comptroller & Auditor General
Of India.

All that professional success,
And a fine equity portfolio too
At a time when most expected me
To fail, to become a liability on
My aging parents' drooping shoulders.

In my 2021-novel Swansong, I predicted hostilities
That would shake the world in 2025.

And in the many novels since,
Each line, each story,
Holds a fragment of truth waiting
For the acknowledgment it deserves.

A simple village cheer,
A neighbor’s quiet respect—
These small affirmations
Anchor the heart more surely
Than gold or lofty accolades ever could.

External validation matters.
Even from the humblest of societies,
Their acknowledgment is a compass,
Guiding us to see
That what we create carries meaning beyond ourselves.

External validation matters not
If I were to go live in the Himalayas
Like an ascetic, a hermit,
Cursing the narcissistic human society,
Extracting pleasure at every falling pillar,
Their sufferings have become mine—
My happiness, I mean, the Schadenfreude.