TEXARKANA MAGAZINE
In the mid-20th century, the game found new life within immigrant and ethnic communities. Around 1937, Jewish women in New York formed the National Mah Jongg League (NMJL) to standardize American play. This version added jokers and predetermined winning hands, setting it apart from traditional Chinese rules. But recently, something has shifted in the game’s popularity. While it never disappeared, its surge can be credited to one major thing: visibility. In pop culture, movies like Crazy Rich Asians and The Joy Luck Club introduced the game to people who had never heard of it. TikTok creators rediscovered it. Instagram accounts dedicated to sharing the beauty of mahjong sets exploded. Documentary filmmakers told the game’s history. Fashion brands released mahjong-themed collections. Celebrities like Julia Roberts, Hoda Kotb, and Jenna Bush Hager have expressed their love of the game in interviews, and other celebrities have posted photos of their mahjong nights. The game went from something only certain people knew about to something that was suddenly everywhere. This growing trend is not just about social media hype. Something more profound may be happening. Our world has become increasingly digital. We communicate through screens. We work from home. We pass people on the
street without making eye contact. Something inside us is hungering for real presence, for time that cannot be optimized or quantified. Mahjong offers precisely that. You cannot play it while checking your phone. You cannot half-participate. The game demands your full attention and your actual presence. And players across Texarkana are throwing in their tiles and joining the game. The interest locally can be attributed to two ladies, Heather Kiser and Helen Mobley, who are passionate about creating a community around this special game. In living rooms, around kitchen tables, and in small groups that grow week by week, they are helping bring mahjong to a whole new set of local players. While Kiser was first introduced to the game just last year, and Mobley has been playing for almost 10 years, they both find the most important aspect of the game to be the close connections made while playing. “Personal connections are important as we age and tend to withdraw from so many activities after years of busyness,” said Kiser. “Mahjong requires focus and a lot of thought, so there’s no room at the table for all your other worries like ‘What’s for dinner?’ or ‘What bills need to be paid?’” Stepping up to the table means a temporary reprieve from the things that so easily weigh us down and a chance to make some friends along the way.
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COMMUNITY & CULTURE
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