MASH

Instructions

Because I imagine that there are many variations of this game, I will describe the game from my experience. 

  • In large letters across the top of a piece of paper, write M A S H 

    • MASH stands for Mansion, Apartment, Shack, or House

  • Then make space for the subcategories with four options underneath each; categories typically include:

    • Life Partner (who you will marry)

    • Salary

    • Career

    • Transportation (what you will use for daily travel)

    • Number of children 

    • Type of pet

  • Sometimes we will add “Hometown” as a category 

  • Under each category, I usually add two favorable outcomes (i.e. two relevant desires of the person I am creating the MASH for), and two wildly silly outcomes (e.g. under “Life Partner” I might add “A skeleton named Larry,” or under transportation, “A cardboard box with a whole in the corner.”) 

  • Then, in a separate area of the paper–maybe even on the backside–you, the facilitator, will draw a dot in the center, and begin a spiral outwards. You keep circling that spiral until the other person says “Stop.”

  • Once you have stopped, you count the number of rings around that spiral. That is the number you will use to cross off items on the MASH list. (e.g. the number is 6)

    • Beginning with the “M” in MASH, and moving through the categories, you will count across six options. You cross out the sixth one. 

    • Continue with this method until you have one item left in each category. The last item remaining in each category is your prophecy (I.e. the last name under “Life Partner” is the person you will marry). 

    • As you continue to count across each category, you skip the last one in each category

    • Go back through and circle the final outcome of each category and read the prediction / prognosis / story to the respective person. 

Modifications:

What other categories of our lived experiences can you think of? Maybe travel destinations, educational institutions, celebrity encounters, etc.

Praxis (why + theory):

Another game I included because of its status as a certified classic. When played between two (maybe four max) people in an intimate setting, you can learn a person’s career aspirations and familial dreams for themself, what they will settle for and what they refuse, moral obligations, as well as their romantic interests and/or their orientation to dating. The depth of personal information that could be revealed is endless–especially when the game is paired with meaningful follow up questions. 

Amidst the silliness that ensues from the ridiculous outcomes, MASH is a trust building exercise. This is why I am emphatic about the exercise being engaged reciprocally–in this way everyone has a turn to share about themselves and pose questions to others. 

I remember playing this game with my cousin one summer–she might have been about 12 years old (because she is ten years younger than me and I was in graduate school). It was primarily just a fun, silly game then. Now a young college student, I played with her again last summer. This time, I learned how new interests have emerged and life goals have changed.