One of the several risk-oriented messages we hope has resonated with readers of our commentaries over the last year is that we have maintained a strong belief that the absence of volatility in equity markets did not in any way diminish the potential for volatility. Today’s turn of trend is a forceful reminder that markets can and likely will turn negative at times. These shifts can be abrupt, and they may arrive with no obvious catalysts. They may prove ephemeral or may herald a longer-term downtrend. Today’s result was quick to form, and we’ve read no singular explanation for its occasion. Unsettling for sure, it still was far from the worst seen in history. And though one may wish to turn and run for fear of more to come, it may not portend an extended decline. Longer-term goals perhaps better served, the plunge represents an opportunity for investors to revisit comfort with interim market losses via a discussion with a trusted advisor.