The Whole Shebang

 

The Whole Shebang

(With recognition to the Monty Python sketch, “You were lucky…” Treat yourself; find it on You Tube.)

Merriam-Webster says the origin of “shebang” is unknown. No matter. What’s of importance to us today is how the word is most commonly used, in the phrase: “the whole shebang.” Why the whole shebang?

But first a quick detour to note the dictionary’s definition of “shebang” as “everything involved in what is under consideration.” OK. But why the whole shebang,,,,?

First voice: “Yes, we had the whole shebang at our house this weekend.”

Second voice: “You were lucky. When we were growing up, when things were good we could afford only half a shebang. We could only dream of having a whole shebang.”

Third voice: “Half a shebang? Sheer luxury. Our sixteenth of a shebang was so small you could fit it in a matchbox. And we had to share it among 17 of us.”

Fourth voice: “You at least had a shebang. Not only did we not have any shebang, we didn’t even have any druthers. I’ll never forget my father at our kitchen cardboard box (we couldn’t afford a table) shaking his head and saying over and over, ‘If I had my druthers.’”

First voice: “Well, my dad said that even though we had a whole shebang, he would far preferred to have had his druthers.”

Third voice: “My dad said he used to have his druthers but lost most of them during Covid.”

Second voice: “You’re lucky he’s still got some. The IRS took all of ours.”

Fourth voice: “At least you got to enjoy yours for a while. We’ve never known what it’s like to have any druthers in the first place.”

First voice: “Well, come over to my place and I’ll show them to you, the whole shebang.”

[300 words]