‘Mahjong has been saving my life’

“Okay, I’ll take the three bam and rack it alongside my other two three bams, now all I need is either a joker or a four bam to complete my consecutive run and yell ‘mahjong’ to the other three competitors at my table.” This is what is going through my head during a typical game of mahjong.

Although, this time is a little different. This time, I’m sitting outside on a deck at the North Farm Yacht Club, in Bristol, wearing a face mask and using hand sanitizer at the end of every round. That’s what happens when you play mahjong in the middle of a pandemic.

But that’s OK because mahjong has been saving my life during the COVID-19 outbreak. It’s keeping my brain functioning and, for an hour or so, lowering my high anxiety and rapidly beating heart as we continue to deal with this horrifying pandemic. It also gives me something to look forward to week after week.

I’ve been playing the game since 2015, when Ellen Bensusan, one of my former teachers at Barrington High School, invited me to join her group at the United Brothers Synagogue.

In June of 2016, I wrote an article in Jewish Rhode Island titled “Mahjong: It’s not just for women anymore.” In the five years since then, our group has continued to thrive, hardly ever missing a week.

Well, until the pandemic hit. Then, meeting at the temple was deemed too risky.

However, last spring, when the weather got warmer, we decided to try to play again. We decided to meet at North Farm, a residential association where a few of our players live. We gathered outside, with a beautiful view of the Warren River. Sometimes, four of us came to play, other times as many as 10, and we followed every safety precaution to avoid catching, or spreading, the virus. 

Resuming our meetings honestly was a game-changer for me. I can only speak for myself, but I feel like the isolation caused by this pandemic has been turning my brain to mush. Playing mahjong seemed to reactivate some of those brain cells, as well as serving as a distraction from the news. It felt “normal” again.

Now that the weather has gotten cold again, we haven’t been playing as frequently. But as we head into more months of this pandemic, my best advice is to find a weekly game or two to exercise your brain and decrease stress. In addition to mahjong, I have a weekly backgammon date with my mother. 

Hope springs eternal – and my hope is that, as soon as the weather gets warmer, we’ll be back on the deck playing mahjong weekly.

SETH CHITWOOD (www.sethchitwood.com) is a freelance writer from Barrington and the creative director of the Angelwood Pictures production company.