Recently, 2 Pens & Lint's own, Henry Duncan, had a chance to ask Jaz a few questions concerning her new chapbook, her literary influences, and what she plans to accomplish with her poetry.

Henry Duncan: Falling Amidst The Crown is one of my favorite poms in Part II. Could you tell us about that poem?

Jaz: Thank you. This piece is about struggling within myself to bring out the creative gifts inside of me, even yet while i'm suffering through my various addictions and painful life situations. It's about fighting through doubts and self-contempt and choosing to love yourself, even though you don't like yourself. It's about moving towards the light..reaching for hope...even if you have to crawl.

HD: You write a lot about turning to Christ. What was the defining moment that made you devote your life to Christ?

Jaz: I was an 8 year old little girl sitting in front of the t.v. I think it was Pat Robertson that was on and he gave the call for salvation. I put my hands on the t.v. and whispered the prayer. As a child I felt Christ make His home in me. I couldn't explain that..but I felt His complete and undying love for me and I knew He would never leave me. And I was filled to overflow with an indominable love for Christ. Even through painful times, I still have that assurance of His devotion to me.

HD: In your forward you say “you will see pieces in here that are ugly. It won't feel good and it might taste bitter going down. That is how it's meant to be.” Why did you make the decision not to water down your poems?

Jaz: Because I lived these journeys before they became poems and there was nothing watered down about it. It was raw and it was real. That's what people relate to..that's what folks can connect to. I have to be true to the experiences, I have to be authentic..it creates an intimacy and a trust between writer and words...between author and reader..between a child of God and her Heavenly Father. And it gives permission for others to be true to their moments as well. It's all about the story. The journey's the thing.

HD:  What do you want your readers to take away from this series: The Carving Out of a Butterfly's Wings?

Jaz:  I want readers to know that in life there is gonna be carvings (pain) and wings (healing). That it's all part of an ugly beautiful story..this life..their life is a symphony. And a symphony has low and high notes. That jewels can come from dirt. That we all can forget our wings sometimes when we're low and hurting. That we forget we're royalty and we forget our purpose. Look at my pain, my lessons, my wounds, my joys in this series. I am still here. A woman full of life, growth, love and more roads to travel. You're still here. You've made it this far and you, inspite of pain, are meant to fly..and you will!

HD: Where can we see you perform?

Jaz: I perform at different spots and go wherever I am led by God's Spirit. Lately I've been at my secnd home Coffee After Dark alot on Thursdays at Wired Beans in Gtown. You can see me sometimes at Jus' Words and Panoramic Poetry. You might see me pop up at Moonstone or at An Art of Conversation. Also I've been venturing out to spots in Brooklyn and Delaware and doing some book fairs in N.J. You can always see my upcoming events listed on my Facebook page.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Read Our First Interview With Jaz

Henry Duncan: How long have you been writing and who/what inspired you to start writing?

Jaz: I have been writing since a young child; 8 or 9 years old. Initially pain inspired my pen. I used to write very, very, very dark poetry. It reflected some of the difficulties of being a child of fright, of loneliness, of low self-esteem, of dark moods & eccentricities & of misunderstanding. But I also had a childhood filled with music, laughter, dance, art, theater, colors and love. It's just that I leaned more towards the shadows. Poetry was my voice of what I couldn't express in real-time. It seemed to fill me up and pour out of me in all types of wondrous shades. Over the years I instinctively learned to allow all things to motivate the ink. That's the beauty of it..anything and anyone can and does inspire my writing. Yet and still..as I started off..pain still brings the deepest and most profound poems out of me. Life, from “death”.

HD: Who are your literary influences?

Jaz: Jill Scott, Maya Angelou, Rita Dove, Nikki Giovanni, The late Ruth Stone, William Shakespeare, Jane Austen. I also must mention the poetry of Sarah McLachlan's lyrics, heavily and sweetly inspires me.

HD: In many of your poems you write about the consequences of sex. In a society where sex is so prevalent what advice do you offer to people that want to abstain from sex?

Jaz: What I know and have lived is to cry out to my Lord Jesus Christ for help! I ask Him to first give me the desire to live Holy and present my body as a living sacrifice. Then I ask for His strength, mercy, grace and keeping power. I say “Lord, I want this and if You don't help me Lord, I'm GOING to do it.” I'm real honest with my Heavenly Father like that. When you give your life to Jesus, you surrender your will, needs, wants, desires, everything to Him. He is the only one who can empower you to say no to what the flesh craves for, but only destroys in the end. Sex outside of marriage in God's eyes is sin... period. When you live outside of God's will and Word there's always consequences; no matter if it's fornication, idolatry, etc. God provides a way of escape from temptation as His Word says, but we just don't want to take it. We want what we want. Don't put yourself in harm's way. Don't tempt yourself. If you're struggling ask for prayer. Take that energy and utilize it elsewhere..channel it into creativity on stage, on the mic, in a poem, in a dance, in a gym. It can be done...I have done it. Have I always accepted God's help? No..as many poems from this book testifies to. But also it's a testimony of how Christ has kept me and is still working on and in me to do His good and perfect will.

HD:  Your book is split into two parts. Without giving away too much what is each part about and how does each part relate to the overall title: The Carving Out Of A Butterfly’s Wings?

Jaz: This is a complete work of poems...almost 60 in total. So Part II is just a continuation of the work. Each part is relate-able to the title in that they speak on the painful stages of development of this creature of beauty... the butterfly. Stages of dormancy, doubt, vulnerability and pain. This book speaks on the human side of it. How all of my struggles show that the hand of God was always there. Weaving, molding, purging, pruning, purifying me. I am God's work of beauty and He is carving me into whom He has made me to be. All those storms were designed, from the enemy's perspective to plunge me into eternal darkness and despair... away from light, life... away from Jesus. But God turned it around and uses ALL of it to form my wingspan which displays colors both light and dark.

HD: Your poem Adultery seems to have a misnomer for a title. Is this poem a metaphor for something else?

Jaz: The title is definitely not a mistake. It is in fact used metaphorically. Adultery is cheating on a marriage. My relationship with Jesus Christ is that marriage; the union that is now and eternal. In this poem I'm speaking about compulsive overeating...about greed. About making food an idol. This is where the adulterous act comes in because anything that receives worship and praise is making it an idol and lifting it above God. Going against the grain of who I am in Him. Looking for salvation, relief and freedom in food. Eating my feelings, instead of dealing with them. The poem starts off “When I'm empty...” Instead of exploring that and asking God to help me through it, I turn to my other “lover” food. Yes, God cares about these things too :-). He wants us to be free and whole in all areas of our lives!

HD: Aside from poetry, what other talents do you have, and do you plan on incorporating them into your poetry ?

Jaz: I am grateful to be gifted in areas of song-writing, acting, dance and singing. I often sing and read when I'm on the mic. Poetry and song-writing to me are very similar. There are times when my poems turn into songs and vice-versa. I love it when that happens! I am currently in an all female poetic ensemble entitled “Wings of Worth”. We minister life & speak on hope through our spoken word play “Hanging On Threads Of Sanity”. I get to incorporate my theatrical background when I perform this choreopoem. As far as dance goes, I look forward to that touching down somewhere in my poetry on the mic.

HD: What do you hope to accomplish with your poetry?

Jaz: My hope, my prayer is that God will use my poetry...His work to break chains of bondage for total freedom. That others will see themselves, their hurts, their struggles, their questions in my poems..and be comforted, challenged, encouraged, inspired, changed and healed. That they will see God. I pray the words point them to Christ and His all encompassing and life-changing love! That others will see the miracles in their lives inspite of the pain, by witnessing the miracle of me. That others will know life is still worth living...to the fullest. Life is still beautiful..it is still a symphony. I want my poetry to let them know that they are okay. That they are worth wholeness. That they are not alone. That the night does not always last and that there is hope in the Light of the world..Jesus Christ! That the storms are increasing their wingspan and God is using it to beautify their existence. Let it incite dances from devastation. I want my words to hug that little child in them that's full of holes and never received the love they were born from and for. I want my poetry to remind the world of laughter. My poetry is not all pain. There are many other facets of my work that have yet to come forth. I pray my poetry sojourns across the globe to all people, everywhere as a mirror. And that the reflection looking back will one day see themselves the way God sees them...a butterfly tried by fired..exquisite, complete and whole.

Read poems from The Carving Out Of A Butterfly's Wings