Hopefully you have the opportunity to read during the summer and some of it is fiction. Sometimes you will remember good lines or good stories and sometimes the book will relate to what you know and have experienced.

Recently read a book called The Medici Return by Steve Berry published by the Grand Central Publishing, NY, 2025. The book setting is Florence, Italy and the plot involves a loan between the Medici family and the Pope of Catholic Church. For generations, the Medici family was a banking family that also bankrolled the Renaissance movement in terms of architecture, religion, art and culture. This setting makes the book a good read.

Two stories that is told to the leading character Cotton Malone that symbolizes his exploits.

Cotton’s grandfather says, did I ever tell you about a barber who whispers to his customers, Let me show you something. This is the most foolish kid in the world. Watch while I prove it to you. The barber laid a dollar bill in one hand and 2 quarters in the other and then called a young boy over and asked which do you want, son? The boy told the quarters and left the shop. The barber says what did I tell you, the kid never learns. Later the customer left the barbershop and saw the same boy coming out of the ice store. Hey son, may I ask you a question? why did you take the quarters instead of the dollar bill? The boy licked his favorite ice cream and said, because the day I take the dollar, the game is over.

Proverbs 14:15 was right. Fools believe every word they hear, but wise people think carefully about everything.

The second story is There was a young man going through the country and sees a very pretty girl and says I want to marry her. The young man approach the father and asked him for permission. Her father, says I will release 3 bulls, one at a time, if you catch the tail of any of the 3, you can catch the tail of anyone of the 3, you can have her hand in marriage.

The first bull was one of the biggest, meanest-looking bull he had ever seen, the young man let it pass. The second bull, another big, fierce bull came out pawing the ground, grunting, slinging slobber, came out rushing. He let it pass. The third bull has small and scrawny. The young man was full of confidence, he jumped to grab the tail and realized something. The bull had no tail.

The point of the story – never let an opportunity pass you by, as they seldom came knocking twice. Lost opportunities were only a gateway to regret.

Linking to dividend paying stocks, in investing you have to think carefully why this opportunity? After you have made some money, you need to preserve it and make it grow, one way to do that is buy profitable companies that can pay dividends. The profitable companies tend to last decades which is good for your and as your money grows there are more opportunities to do good with your money.

There are more questions than answers, till the next time – to raising questions.