If you were to do an exhaustive search online regarding the subject of Swiss Army Knives (SAK) you would be prone to find lots of historical and technical details and there is a plethora of “What Is The Best Swiss Army Knife?” web lists out there. If you are a collector, or in my case a new collector, all of that information is GREAT! But it doesn’t explain WHY there is a connection between a boy or man and his pocketknife.
First and foremost, it is a tool which grants you independence. I got my first knife (that I can remember) when I joined the Cub Scouts probably around 8 or 10 years old and in fact it is still in a drawer at my parents house. Man oh man was I proud of that knife. I’m sure as a Cub Scout I used it for whittling or to sharpen sticks when playing in the woods or maybe even used the screwdriver on my bicycle to tighten things up.
I truly get the emotional connection when a young boy gets a hardened steel knife. It’s DANGEROUS and by golly you were entrusted to operate it responsibly, and to use it as a TOOL and a LIFE SAVING DEVICE as any good scout is taught. You are MAN ENOUGH to have something hazardous, maybe for the first time ever.
