When my mom, Anne, passed away in 2008 she left our family her cherished Mah Jongg set. My sister Janie begged me to learn to play and I did so reluctantly – mostly to honor my mother’s memory. I had little interest in learning the game, but I did have childhood memories of loud laughter, clacking tiles, and the totally incomprehensible shouts of 1 BAM 2 DOT coming from our small kitchen.
My obsession with this game didn’t grow until a few years later when I finally realized that you can’t use a joker with a pair and that any day playing Mah Jongg was a good one. It took some time, but I was truly hooked.