Teacher Accreditation with April Leffler

October 2023, on Zoom

Compiled by Lisa Stroyan, Fort Collins, Colorado

Teacher Trainer April Leffler guided 12 candidates (now teachers) from three countries and seven auditors through deepening into the T’ai Chi Chih (TCC) practice. Beginning with the analogy of “suction cups” on our feet like a tree frog, we worked our way up to the knees, tan t’ien, waist, and wrists, exploring each movement, each principle, and how to teach.

April reminded us that TCC is a continual process of exploring deeper and to “beware the teacher not working on their practice.” She encouraged us to be patient with ourselves, and to allow ourselves to ripen into our practice, like “green bananas.” Even though spending so much time on Zoom was difficult for many, several of the candidates shared that they would never have been able to participate otherwise.

Eumaira, a native Spanish speaker: “It was transformative and the first long training in my life. An internal Godly responsibility was born within me. I am more committed to practicing TCC. I can’t live without sharing these wonderful drops of Divine energy.”

Kate from the U.K.: “My life changing ‘aha’ has been the realization that my disability, rather than something to hide and compensate for, is actually my superpower. I now know my arm has so much to teach me and in turn teach others. I can now share Joy Thru Movement feeling blessed for my differences and truly be myself.”

Charis: “I loved the sense of community and sharing, and at times it was emotional. I thought once I became a teacher that I would be done, but now I understand this is a first step and I am full of anticipation.”

Kay shared this picture of her desk during accreditation (see below): “I had to surrender to the waves of sensory input, instead of trying to control them. The week was an experiential lesson in yinning and yanging. My ‘aha moment’ happened the third time we were finishing a small-group breakout session. I said to myself, ‘I love this’ and the process of teaching. We were taking baby steps as beginning teachers, and it was exhilarating. The give-and-take, the instruction and fine-tuning, the feedback, the sense of connection and growth — intoxicating. I may be a “green banana,” needing to ripen in its own time, but I am still a teacher. Not an imposter, not a pretender — a teacher. I need to ground that energy into the soles of my feet, so I can gracefully share it with the world.”

Mari, like other new teachers, wrote a mission statement: “To bring TCC to as many people as possible so that they may feel the healing energy of this wonderful practice.“ (Note: Mari is the longstanding assistant and now teacher for the Folsom prison class.)

Beverly from Belize: “Identifying a couple of takeaways from such a rich experience and then distilling them into a sentence or two seems almost impossible. I learned that the secret to accessing the Chi lies in the power of properly yinning and yanging. When I let go and trust myself to soften in the process, I can enjoy all the Chi I want. There is enough Chi for all.” Beverly’s mission is to create the first studio/facility for TCC in Belize.

Nancy Hellebrand Blood is exhausted but happy: “Accreditation was very hard. The issue wasn’t TCC, it was my age-old habit patterns that were triggered. I couldn’t identify it until after graduation, but for days I was unable to be myself. My confident daily practice completely eluded me — as did my everyday confidence and easy nature. Thank goodness I regained my sense of self towards the end. It was like coming back into my body. 

Even if you have to go through narrow spaces for what feels like days on end, it is so worthwhile. Here I am, the day after graduation, so tired and totally blissed out that I did something so meaningful and beautiful. I want to share the joy and spiritual potential in Justin Stone’s brilliant yet easy 19 movements and one pose. TCC is an inner journey that is meant to be shared. It was worth every minute of the struggle. It was a transformational experience.”