I recently had the chance to travel to Italy. I went to Naples for a professional engagement and immersed myself in the culture of southern Italy. I spent time with people who were not fluent in English and had many opportunities to learn and use Italian. Technology helps, and Google Translate is handy, but being present in Naples for two weeks creates a real chance to pick up the local language and customs. Simple phrases go a long way. “Thank you” is grazie. “You are welcome” is prego. “Good morning” or “good day” is buongiorno, which Italians tend to use until early evening when they switch to buonasera for good evening.
The food was fantastic. I have never enjoyed pizza as much as I did there. In Naples, when you order a pizza, it is yours. Neapolitans do not share their pies, and splitting is considered rude. You order your pizza and you eat your pizza. I tasted local wine, and the lemons are remarkable. Limoncello makes a wonderful aperitif after a meal. I tried pasta with squid ink, which turns your mouth black and your smile into a souvenir. The coffee changed my taste for good. Italians drink espresso mostly, but they make a beautiful cappuccino, and I found myself favoring that in the morning. If you are dragging mid day, a quick espresso gets you moving again. A cornetto, the Italian cousin of a croissant filled with cream, is a perfect breakfast companion.
One custom that took getting used to was driving. I am grateful we chose taxis, the Metro, and the train to move around the city, because I am not sure I would enjoy driving there. Intersections do not look like ours. At merge points and traffic circles you worry about the usual things and then a few more. People drift down the middle of the highway. Motorbikes and scooters zip by on both sides. At times they ride up on sidewalks and slip back in front of you. In traffic, you must be careful and a little assertive at the same time to get where you need to go, always watching for scooters weaving in front, behind, and beside you. Relying on public transportation was the right call. It let us navigate a new place without harm to ourselves or our new Naples neighbors.
We made time for the Amalfi Coast as well. Professional commitments limited our range, so we spent an evening in Sorrento with colleagues. Dinner with a view of the Mediterranean Sea and Mount Vesuvius is hard to beat. For this night we did have a rental car due to our travel needs for business. We got to experience very narrow roads, with all of the traffic concerns I already discussed. To get to our chosen restaurant we had to travel up a massive hillside. So not only were the traffic concerns imminent, but the challenge of climbing a hill and turning around blind corners, dodging scooters and pedestrians. The drive was worth the view and we enjoyed a great dinner with the awesome hospitality of Sorrento.
Mt. Vesuvius is still active and famous for good reason. Its most recent eruption was in March 1944, and it damaged nearby towns and an Allied air base. Millions of people live in the region, so the volcano is closely monitored. The eruption most people think of is the violent event of 79 AD that buried Pompeii and Herculaneum. Stabiae and Oplontis were also overwhelmed, along with parts of Boscoreale and Boscotrecase. I visited Pompeii and climbed to the top of Vesuvius to take in the views of the Bay of Naples. The experience hit me hard, especially in the museum where the casts of a family are on display, a mother holding a child and the father close by. As a father of two boys and a husband, it was difficult. I found myself asking a simple question. If we had lived in Pompeii, would I have been ready to get my family to safety? Could I have done it?
Walking the streets of Pompeii, you see the ingenuity of that Roman world and the scale of what remains. You step out of a building and look north and there is Vesuvius in its quiet grandeur. What would it have been like to see a mountain spewing rock and dust into the sky after a midday explosion? Pumice falling like snow. Roofs bending under the weight. Breathing hard. Not knowing that by seven or eight the next morning a pyroclastic surge would sweep through and end life in an instant. It is hard to fathom. The tragedy of 79 AD still speaks.
At the top of Vesuvius today you see seismic instruments and data collection systems. As you hike you catch the smell of sulfur and watch thin plumes vent from the ground. I asked locals how they live with an active volcano in sight. Most said they hope it stays asleep so life can continue as normal. The region benefits from early warning systems and a deep knowledge of the volcano’s history and its current behavior. Still, each person should have a plan to evacuate, along with a backup when plan A fails. Even then, some things are beyond our control. But choosing to have no plan at all feels careless.
I think about financial planning in the same way. We need to remain flexible and active so we can make changes when life events happen, both good and bad. Sometimes that means adjusting investments. Sometimes it means adding life insurance. It can be a succession plan for a business, or the birth of a grandchild. At our firm we call these moments critical financial and life events, or CFEs. No one can set a financial plan on a shelf and expect it to last untouched for an entire lifetime. Adjustments are part of the process. New plans are made as conditions evolve. At times, you need an evacuation plan because of market conditions or business developments. Risk exists whether it is a volcano in Naples or a volcano in your financial life.
What is your strategy for CFEs? How will you respond when the next one arrives? If you want to explore this, reach out and we will start a conversation. We can talk about what matters most to you, how to protect it, and how to potentially cushion the bad and celebrate the good.
Investing involves risk including the possible loss of principal. No investment strategy can guarantee a profit or protect against loss. This content was generated utilizing the help of AI research and is intended for informational purposes only. Please consult a qualified professional for personalized advice.