The Current
18 • JUNE 2014 Brought to you by
About and for Valley seniors
Group grows for love of Chinese game, Mahjong By Valerie Putnam
CURRENT CONTRIBUTOR
What began as one woman's quest for game-mates blossomed into a fun senior activity at the Spokane Valley Senior Center, 2426 N. Discovery Place. Gloria Sawyer fell in love with the Chinese game Mahjong in the mid-1990s while wintering in South Carolina. Mahjong is a Chinese game of skill, strategy and calculation involving four players. “And a whole lot of luck,” Sawyer laughingly said of the game. After returning home to Liberty Lake in the spring, she had no one to play the fourperson game with. That's when she set out to recruit some players. "I thought I would teach some people," Sawyer said. "I love the game." Asking all her friends and bridge partners, she eventually recruited three women and taught the small group to play in her home. Over the course of a couple years, the group grew to 12 players. "We outgrew my home,” Sawyer said. "It got to be too many people." Looking for a venue that accommodated the group, Sawyer approached the Spokane Valley Senior Center in 2009. "They were delighted to have a Mahjong group," Sawyer said. “We like the opportunity to introduce new activities,” Senior Center Specialist Karen Clark-Parson said in an email. “(Mahjong) is a good addition.” The group currently meets in the center’s library every Friday from 12:30 p.m. to about 3:30 p.m. Sawyer facilitates the play over the course of several games, averaging 20 minutes each. Longtime player Donna Tiley takes over when Sawyer is absent. “It’s an open game,” Sawyer said. “Anyone can walk in at anytime.” Mahjong uses 144 decorative tiles and eight bonus tiles made from bamboo or bone. The tiles are broken into different suits: 36 in the Bamboo suit, 36 in Circle suit, 36 in Character suit, 16 Wind, 12 Dragon and the eight bonus tiles include four Flowers and four Seasons. Similar to the card game gin rummy, the object of the game is to build sets out of the decorative tiles as well as achieve the highest point value. “It’s a game of concentration,” Sawyer said. “You really have to concentrate.” In order for a player to achieve a Mah-
CURRENT PHOTO BY VALERIE PUTNAM
Regina Eitzen, right, and Sandy McDonald smile as they compete in a game of Mahjong in the library of the Spokane Valley Senior Center. Also participating in the game were Donna Tiley (foreground) and Helen Haugh (not pictured).
PLAY MAHJONG Mahjong is played every Friday starting at 12:30 p.m. in the library of the Spokane Valley Senior Center, 2426 N. Discovery Place. Anyone is welcome to attend. For more information, call Gloria Sawyer at 255-5587 or Donna Tiley at 9269956. The Senior Center hosts a wide variety of activities, including art classes, senior fitness, a variety of different card games, table tennis, Wii Bowling and billiards. There are approximately 30 different activities to choose from that meet at the center every month. For more about the center’s activities, call 926-1937. jong, each player selects and discards tiles until an entire set of combinations has been made that correlates with a card compiled by the National Mahjong League. Each player has the card in front of them as a reference during game play. Sawyer said one trick to learning the game is getting familiar with the card. “We get new cards every year,” Sawyer said. “We play according to their rules.”
Both Sawyer and Tiley find mental and social benefit to playing the game. “It keeps your mind active,” Sawyer said. “No game is ever the same. It’s one of the reasons I play.” According to the rummy.com website, playing Mahjong is “beneficial for individuals suffering from dementia, cognitive and memory difficulties.” Sawyer was introduced to the game by a woman she played tennis with in Myrtle Beach who was looking for players. Sawyer's tennis partner taught Sawyer and two other women with whom they played doubles. Tiley learned a slightly different version of the game in the mid-1970s while living in Pennsylvania. She was recruited from a lady on her bowling team. Her friend grabbed her and said they needed someone, and Tiley was going to learn. “Most people when they first start learning get a headache,” Tiley said. “And they go home with a headache. I did when I learned.” Throughout the year, the group holds special Mahjong tournaments, scoring differently from the regular weekly play. “You play for points,” Sawyer said. “Whoever has the most points wins.” Although the game is challenging to learn, the women encourage new players to try the game.
“Once you like it, you really like it,” Tiley said. “We’ll teach them if they don’t know how to play,” Sawyer said. “We’re all very patient with learners.” Sawyer offers encouragement for anyone attempting to learn the game. “Don’t be discouraged; you won’t learn it in one session,” Sawyer said. “I would say it takes three lessons to play pretty well. But to learn the finer points of the game, give it six months playing once a week.” She believes the effort required to learn the game is worth it in the end. “It’s a lot of fun,” Sawyer added. “It’s fun but frustrating — but I love it.”