#16: The Swiss Army Knife
Sometimes I feel helpless. I can churn out a 2000 word essay no problem; my drawing skills have progressed beyond stick figures; and if you happen to have the time, I could play you (a slightly rusty version of) Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto. But it’s fair to say life keeps pushing mountains into my face that I haven’t yet learnt to climb, never mind conquer.
I have always liked figuring things out for myself, even if it means getting things wrong first. I like to stare at a problem, crawl under and over it, poke its belly, until I find my solution.
If I am going to tackle these mountains myself, like any good mountaineer, I figured I need the right equipment.
And so, that is where my Swiss Army Knife comes in.
In 1884, Karl Elsener opened a cutler’s workshop in Ibach-Schwyz. Soon after, the Swiss Army Knife, a multi-functional pocket knife, was born.
Swiss Army Knives have developed and diversified since then. There are patterned ones, heavy duty ones, large and small, some have USBs, some have lights. They are all satisfying to hold in the palm of your hand and they all have stories.
On the Victorinox website, these stories are collected: stories of heroism and survival and business deals.
My knife’s story has only just begun, but I know where it began.
It began with my desire to be self-sufficient, to be able to reach into my pocket and find the tools to solve a problem. From slicing open the packaging on the student newspapers I distribute, to opening a bottle at a party, I wanted to have the right tools for the occasion.
I know there is nothing particularly interesting about being able to get into a drink quickly, or being the handy person at Christmas who can negotiate a gift’s packaging. But I also know that owning these tools are part of a wider desire to own the tools to tackle life itself.
The Swiss Army Knife is a quick-fix solution in attempting to grow up. I am always ready with tweezers or a screwdriver, but these aren’t the tools I really need. I cannot buy self-confidence and slide it out of a shiny pocket knife or unfold the ability to perform in a job interview. Having access to a pen is not the same as being able to use it.
And so I can clutch the reassuringly red object clattering on my keys and remind myself that, just as I always have a pair of scissors and a nail file, I also have other tools that I cannot hold. We cannot turn our skills into physical objects that we can keep on a key ring. We have instead to rely on ourselves to remember that they exist and that we have the power to reach them.
We have our own Swiss Army Knives full of abilities, more even than the ten functions embedded in my pocket knife, and even more usefully than a pocket knife, we can continue to find and unfold new tools.
