Q&A with Senior TCC Teacher Nancy Jo Bleier

Sitka, Alaska | Accredited 1997

It’s been a fun exercise to think about all the T’ai Chi Chih (TCC) years. Where has the time gone that I’m now considered a Senior Teacher? I was accredited in Albuquerque, N.M., by Ed Altman; Justin visited daily to adjust our movements.

How did you learn about TCC? Why did you become accredited?

My teacher, Russ Brown, travelled to Sitka, Alaska, and taught TCC classes on two evenings and two Saturdays every few months. He allowed us to lead the group if we so desired, and after the first time I led a movement, I knew I wanted to be accredited. TCC resonated with me and my body from the moment I began taking classes. I could feel the Chi moving. When I expressed a desire to travel to Albuquerque for accreditation, Russ said fine. At that time no other teacher was required to co-sign that I was prepared. I was very nervous about attending.

I originally learned about TCC from a physical therapist in 1995 who suggested I watch a video by Carmen Brocklehurst. I ended up calling the Albuquerque Center asking about Alaska teachers. Carmen heard this request and put the word out at a teacher gathering. Russ Brown, from Iowa at the time, had two daughters in Sitka so he began offering classes during those visits.

Going to Albuquerque was important since Justin and Carmen lived there. The weeklong accreditation was held in the evenings so those who worked could attend. When it was presentation time, I was so relieved that I had prepared an informal one for a retired teachers’ group in Sitka. Other TCC teachers came to assist, and it was helpful to see how they moved and taught.

Tell a first-person story about Justin.

Justin was scary to get corrections from and yet very gentle. I was very shy around him. He was definitely hard of hearing so would talk loudly to Ed about us. Of course, this also happened at teacher conferences down the road. I learned right away that he was not going to answer a question directly. I still have the typed and handwritten notes he wrote to thank me for becoming accredited or for a card I had sent him.

How has teaching changed you?

I said many years ago I would not be a teacher as my mother, sister, and brother all went into teaching. With TCC, though, I became a teacher and a fellow student. Teaching, I found, was fun! After accreditation I started in community schools, later on to the local university. I also incorporated my teaching in the hospital where I worked as a social worker. It was very rewarding seeing folks who had strokes or mental health challenges feeling the Chi during seated sessions. I went on to teach fellow employees through the Hospital Employee Assistance program. After I was accredited to teach Seijaku, I offered it to small groups. It was a challenge for folks to sometimes resonate with Seijaku as the practice is very subtle and powerful.

Share an “aha” moment from your teaching.

Teaching after three hip surgeries was possible! None of my students (nor I) are doing TCC perfectly but each of us is striving to be better for each moment of each movement. It’s a privilege to allow others to experience the movements in their own bodies and watch them have their own “aha moments” as they become more aware of how they move (with long arms, shorter arms, big steps, little steps).

How do you incorporate instruction/lessons learned from Justin? 

Justin’s words whether in TCC News or what KG posts in various places continue to resonate. My husband even reads his writings in the TCC News or Vital Force. Reading Justin’s words aloud in classes gave students a different perspective — though I found some students did not like or agree with what he was saying, especial in Abandon Hope.

Share a teaching experience that you started.

In July 1997, we started having T’ai Chi Chih Practice by the Sea on the first Saturday of every month (depending on the weather). It stopped in April 2020, but this summer we attempted to restart it. Maybe it has run its course. I’m not teaching at this time, and I’m okay with this for now.

What lasting lesson(s) have you learned?

The best part has been the fellow teachers I’ve met over the years. Doing a daily practice is rewarding for being in the moment and knowing there are hundreds of others practicing around the world.