With adults differing on what democracy means to them except perhaps the right to choose, imagine the difficulty of explaining the concept to a four-year-old.

Democracy is the buzzword these days. You can`t pick up a newspaper or turn on the TV without being bombarded with one explanation or another for what constitutes a true democracy.

And with adults differing on what it means to them except perhaps the right to choose, imagine the difficulty of explaining the concept to a four-year-old. Suffice it to say that it is easier said than done.

Think about it, children are no less than a dictator trying to get anything and everything that they want, and the funny thing is that they are successful most of the time. Keeping this trend in mind, I was a little taken aback when my four-year-old asked me on February 18 why I was not at work. This is not to say that he didn`t want me around; it`s just that he couldn`t figure out why baba was at home and watching TV so intently -- two things he`s not accustomed to.

This was indeed a challenge beyond the usual ones where I could conveniently say “go ask your mother”. So I sat him down, drew a blank and I found that I was asking myself what is democracy? Roughly speaking by definition it means `people power`-- but how do you explain this to someone who only knows that what s/he say matters?

So, I took a deep breath and started by telling my son that since a lot of people lived in Pakistan, they needed someone to listen to them, take care of their needs, make sure that they were safe and could do the things that they wanted to do. Seeing the confused look on his face, I decided to switch over to `four-year-old-speak` and told him that everyone needed an `aunty`, like the one he had at school, but the only difference was that it needn`t be an `aunty` only and could also be an `uncle`. He nodded -- so far, so good.

Now that he understood that the entire country needed an `aunty` or an `uncle`, he needed to understand that all the people of this country had the right to choose that person. This I knew wasn`t going to be easy, as the idea of being able to choose your `aunty` was alien to him. I knew I had to break it down for him, so I figured that I would use an analogy of food. I began with his two favourite food items -- chicken nuggets and fried chicken. This made me think of the all too many similarities between the political parties.

I began by asking him what he preferred more of the two. Nuggets was the immediate response. Without giving him much chance to think, I asked him whether he always got them -- a shake of the head followed by an accusing “No”. My third question did mama give the nuggets to him when he and his younger brother both demanded them? The answer was, “Yes”. The rest was easy as I explained to him that this how all the people in Pakistan choose their `aunty` or `uncle` and whomever most of them wanted they got.

I had done it. I had successfully explained a concept most adults have difficulty understanding to a four-year-old! And just as I was basking in my glory, the next question hit me “What if they are bad?”

Ah, there is nothing like the curious mind of a four-year-old. I knew now that I was in deep trouble and that this was not going to be one of those easy short answer type deals and that my son intended to make sure that he understood what was going on. And for a split second I couldn`t help contemplate whether all the voters had actually thought so deeply about the choices they had made.

But before I could ponder deeply into the complexities of the adult world, a gentle pull at my sleeve brought me back to reality. I knew I had to start my answer somewhere but where exactly was eluding me. After a frantic few seconds of getting the mind to think (I wish I could think like this at work), I had the answer.

“What do you do when aunty is angry with you?” I asked. A quizzical look came onto my son`s face and he ventured a guess, “I tell you and mama.” Right! And when you tell mama and baba, we go and talk to your aunty and tell her to stop. Well that`s what all the people in Pakistan do. They tell the aunty or uncle that s/he has been bad and tell him/her not to do what she has been doing. He nodded. I am not sure whether to acknowledge his understanding or a general lack of interest. And as I was contemplating what the next question would be he got up and I could here him ask his brother to accompany him as they went to their mother to demand some nuggets.

Finally, I was able to get back to watching the proceedings of Election Day. As I watched I couldn`t help but wonder how trivial the word `democracy` had become. Everyone and anyone had the word on their lips but I wondered how many of those had voted or were casting their votes knew what it meant. Perhaps they didn`t care and just wanted a change. Perhaps they didn`t care who the `uncle` or `aunty` was as long it was a new face, someone who brought them the promise of newer types of `nuggets` and `fried chicken`.

As the day unfolded, one thing I was sure of was that democracy had to be learnt at an early age for it to have any meaning in a person`s life and was glad that I was able to convey that to my son so that maybe when he grows up he can truly play his part. And that`s when it struck me that it`s just not good enough for adults to talk about democracy, it has to be taught to our children as well. The question then for all of us adults to ponder is are we actually doing it?