AFTER THE OSCARS

I want to thank my father for his sperm
And not much else


I want to thank my mother who taught me how to walk when I was one
And even later, when the journeys got too long
Or too dark
Before shutting me out of her life one fine day
Without any explanation
Or remorse


I want to thank God
For all this beautiful confusion


I want to thank Winnie from whence the pain came
She's the sensuous breath in everything I shoot
Providing me with a motive to the crimes


I want to thank Susan who came like an ephemeral spring
Just when the winters seemed interminable


I want to thank Gautam uncle
For believing that I could do anything I wanted
And for the amphetamines I OD’d on


I want to thank my characters
For agreeing to work with me


I want to thank David Lynch and JD Salinger
For touching my life with their genius


I want to thank my financiers
For coping with my tantrums
Even on that tempestuous 24th February morning
When I was on the verge of a nervous breakdown


I want to thank my audience
Without you, all this would've been inconsequential
All
This


I want to thank myself
For not dying at twenty one
For waking up on most mornings
For lying successfully on others
This being one of those