I yearn for the election years of yesterday. Politics were just not discussed, not even among family.

Pop said it gave him indigestion if he had to listen to politics at the dinner table.

Granny snorted and said none of it was fit to repeat anyway.

And then there was Mama, keeping her opinions to herself as she hid behind her crossword puzzle or Harlequin.

Until one day, I had to go to the voting polls with her.

Mama had to take me to the doctor. Seeing as I was sick with some horrific form of an X-Files-related virus, Mama knew once she got me home, that's where we were probably staying for a few days.

Into the rec department we went and Mama sat me down at the edge of the curtain of the voting booth.

"You keep your eyes closed and if you do happen to see anything, don't you ever, under any circumstances, breathe a word about who I voted for."

I don't have a clue who she voted for and didn't care then or now.

I was so sick I was seeing things in triplicate and may have spotted a unicorn in the parking lot, so which ballot she used, or who she voted for, was the least of my concern.

A few years later, my school was doing a fun mock campaign with people setting up booths for Mondale/Ferraro and Reagan/Bush to see who would win.

My grandfather was outraged.

"That is the biggest crock of nonsense I've ever heard! Have they no common decency? They are trying to find out how people are voting by seeing what you young'uns come back and report!" he bellowed, his rich, deep roar vibrating through the house.

I was nonplussed.

"So, which booth am I gonna go vote at? Reagan and Bush or Mondale and the car lady?"

I thought his head would explode. He was furious they would even ask us to do such a thing.

"Who a person votes for is private. It's nobody's business. Nobody!"

I still needed to know who to vote for.

"Tell ‘em you ain't gotta worry about it because you ain't old enough to vote," was Granny's response.

Mama leaned more towards her father's opinion, but simply said, "Oh my," when I told her about this project that was supposed to focus on our rights to vote and the privilege we were given.

"I still don't know who to vote for," I groaned days later.

"Don't vote for who we tell you to, Kitten," she said. "Do your own research and vote for the person you think would be the best. Pop's right though; it's not any one's business and that does seem like they are trying to figure out how the parents are voting."

"I don't get it. Why is this such a big deal and so ‘top-secret?'"

It took a moment to gather her thoughts before she could respond.

Back then, your political yearnings were private and not to be discussed.

Who one supported - or disliked - could cause deep rifts in families, in business and because not everyone felt the same way, you kept your opinions to yourself to keep the peace.

She tried to explain all of this to me but I still didn't understand why who we wanted to vote for was shrouded in such mystery.

And then, one day, that changed and it seemed like everyone was talking about politics.

Granny blamed a lot of it on Madonna, who she blamed pretty much everything for in the ‘90s.

In 1990, "Rock the Vote" came out and it made talking about politics not only more common place but acceptable.

"Gah!" Granny bellowed as she got up to turn off the TV.

"I am so stinkin' glad Madonna is telling me how I need to vote. I reckon if she hadn't told me that, I'd still be sitting here, not knowing I had any rights whatsoever."

Granny cooled her ire for a moment.

"I can't believe they wrapped the American flag around that woman. It's shameless!"

She also said it was patriotic sacrilege and she hoped that wasn't a real American flag.

"Granny, it's to help make people my age get out and vote," I explained.

Granny glared at me.

"Let me tell you something, all of them there celebrities is paid. Just ‘cause Ms. Material Girl gets up there and shakes her hiney all disgraceful-like in her drawers don't mean I am gonna listen. And you, young'un, need to think about why she is telling you to vote. I ain't buying what she's a selling. Or any of ‘em."

Suddenly, I was on the receiving end of Granny's wrath all because I was excited about voting and made the mistake of saying Madonna made a video about it.

Maybe I should have left Madge out of it.

Or maybe it would be better if we brought her back now.

Who knows? It was easier then, and much more pleasant to endure election years when we didn't feel compelled to talk about it all the time.

There was no ridiculing, no mudslinging and no low blows about morals and integrity - and that's amongst friends discussing politics, not the politicians.

"Mama, who are you going to vote for?" Cole asked me recently.

"Sweetness," I began. "Rule number one: We don't discuss politics. Not even with family. It's just wrong and shouldn't be done."

"What's rule number two?"

"There's not a number two - there is only one."

And if we stick to that one, maybe we will still be talking come November.

Sudie Crouch is an award winning humor columnist and author of the e-published novel, “The Dahlman Files: A Tony Dahlman Paranormal Mystery.”