We now have a solar roof and it takes care of our electrical needs on sunny days but the sun doesn’t always shine. At night, our panels rest. During storms and very cloudy days, the panels aren’t at peak efficiency.

Yet when it comes to personal finances, I generally come across people whose planning assumes that the sun will always shine.

Many of these people are do it yourselfers where one partner in a couple handles the finances and does it well. But what happens when that person gets too busy or injured or sick or passes away?

What about when old age and diminished mental capacity don’t permit them to perform in the way they’d like?

What happens to a couple who are living together for many years when the storms finally roll in?

Not long ago, someone asked me what happens if the bull market ends? Will the stock market go down?

I told him the question is wrong. We know the market always goes up and down.

The long-term trend for a century has been up but we know the market will go down and we need to plan for that.

We enjoy the sunshine and warm weather, the lazy days of summer. But we don’t throw out our umbrellas and raincoats and keep our flashlights handy.

We know that the sun doesn’t always shine and we always need to keep in mind the possibility of stormy days ahead and prepare accordingly.