Wikipedia defines Sansabelt as, “Sansabelt is a brand of men’s trousers. The trousers have a wide webbed elastic band sewn into the waist, which is intended to make a belt or suspenders unnecessary, hence the name sans a belt.“. My Uncle Benton would have chosen a little different descriptive in his definition.

My Aunt Trilma, Uncle Benton’s wife, had decided he needed some new dress pants.  A decision that I’m not sure he agreed with but that he went along with to keep the peace.  At least for a little while.  This would have been in the 1970’s and Sansabelt slacks were a major innovation in pants.  They did not require a belt or suspenders and well, quite frankly, looked a little naked without one of the aforementioned.

So Aunt Trilma convinced my Uncle Benton that these were stylish, easy to wear and that “he needed to get his wardrobe up to date.”  Words that my wife utters to me with great frequency these days.  As Megan and I looked for a new couch the other day she said, “Myron, what happened to you?  You used to have such great style.”  “Hmm,” I muttered, “I have three style killing dependents who wear my style budget every day.”  And I would not have it any other way.  Too blessed to adequately describe.  I digress!  Back to the Sansabelt slacks.

So true to Uncle Benton’s form, he found absolute hilarity in the experience of wearing those pants.  Once!  He began describing his wearing those pants to church as their maiden trip.  Uncle Benton was thin as a rail and he described not being able to get them cinched tight enough.  So, there he was, walking into and around the church, both hands in his pockets, holding those Sansabelt pants up.  He described that ‘he had put his hands in his pockets, made fists with his hands and lifted the pants up so they would not fall down around his ankles.’  He further described when he would go to shake someone’s hand, he would quick as he could stick his hand out, shake and return to the balled up fist inside his pant pocket holding his pants in place.  I am laughing as I write this without adequate, hysterical description and can see his face with that wry grin while my Aunt Trilma is in the background belly laughing at the whole event and description.

I guess I have never known a better storyteller than Uncle Benton.  And I have known some great ones.  He could take the most mundane of events and turn them into stories remembered for a lifetime.  I only knew him until I was a teenager because he was called to Heaven early due to that terrible brain tumor that robbed us of him.  Heaven definitely gained when he joined the chorus.

So, as best I remember, the Sansabelt slacks were a one and done.  Aunt Trilma told through tears of laughter, of Uncle Benton coming home and rounding up every pair of those stylish slacks and depositing them in the trash can with a “haa!  Begone you deliverers of misery.”  I tell you, he made everything that this young boy remembers fun and or funny.

“Nehemiah said, “Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”  Nehemiah 8:10 (NIV)

I often wondered why they simply did not return those Sansabelt slacks to the store.  I guess that would have robbed some of the fun from this funny, and true, story.