We’re checking in on you.

Things are tough out there. We’ve never seen anything quite like it before. And we sincerely hope you are doing fine.

We went for a walk with Mrs. Manward last night.

We talked about the news.

We’ve lost a lot of money in the last few weeks. Our little flower business has some fresh obstacles… none of which we imagined when we started it last spring. And real estate values are surely on their way down.

It’s not fun to think about.

But each step took us a bit farther.

We stopped to look at our sheep. We’ve got 10 ewes in the upper pasture. Each of them is ready to give us another lamb… maybe two. Any day now.

No worries up there.

From there, we paid a visit to the hens. They paid no attention to us as we lifted the latch, opened the door and grabbed breakfast for the family… and our neighbor.

No worries down there. All is fine.

After that, we strolled to the apiary.

Winter is tough on bees. It’s cold. It’s wet. And many of the bees don’t leave the hive for months on end.

But they made it.

They worked hard all last summer to store some honey away. They sure used it over the last month.

No worries for them. They’re as busy as ever.

The Right Thing to Do

Over the years, a lot of folks have asked us why we do it… why we spend so much time doing what we don’t have to.

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If you’re waiting for us to say we do it so we’re prepared for times like these… keep waiting.

If that were the case, we should have built a loom to weave toilet paper and a distiller to brew high-test hand sanitizer.

No.

We built what we built because it’s the right thing to do.

Nobody should live in fear of somebody else taking away his right to live… his right to thrive.

Nobody should live in fear of the governor’s orders, the president’s tweets or the grocer’s delivery schedule.

Nobody should wonder how their kid will eat because his school just closed for a month.

But we’re not dumb – at least not that dumb.

We know we’re blessed. Few folks can do what we’ve managed to do.

We know, as Warren Buffett says, that we won the “ovarian lottery.” We got lucky.

Many folks across the world and across America aren’t so lucky.

They’re the ones we’re worried about today. They don’t have dozens of acres or hefty savings from when times were good.

For a lot of folks… times were never all that good.

But we go to sleep at night knowing we’ve done all we can.

Three years ago, we introduced the world to the Triad. And we’re convinced the ideas of Liberty, Know-How and Connections have never been more valuable than they are right now.

For every notch stocks dive lower… the potent ideas we preach become that much stronger.

Our Liberty has rarely felt more uncertain.

Gun sales are soaring. Police are handcuffing business owners who refuse to lock their doors. And borders are closed.

It may be two weeks or two months… but our Liberty has never been lower in our lifetimes. It will come back. But not all of it.

Like the mainstream press loves to announce, there’s a new normal.

Perhaps most head-scratching these days, though, is how to utilize our Connections.

Without a doubt, “social distancing” will be deemed the word of the year. We can’t touch… we can’t work together… and we must treat every human as if he’s a carrier.

It’s scary.

But does this mean our Connections are that much less valuable?

Far from it.

It’s in times like these when Connections become the most valuable asset.

We’re only in the first days of the nation’s lockdown. For most folks, social distancing remains a novel idea… something to gripe about on Facebook.

Wait until day 12… or day 112.

Who you know and who you can rely on will be far more important than your brokerage statement – no matter how much money you started with.

And finally… it’s Know-How’s time to shine.

Oh boy.

Folks have said the ideas we publish are old-timey… that they’re nostalgic… and that they’re not all that useful in a world where we can get a week’s worth of groceries plopped on our front stoop.

Most of our loyal readers don’t see it that way, though.

The World Through a Different Lens

They write us all the time to thank us for reminding folks of what they truly need to know.

That’s why we’re not all that worried about you.

We bet you have the smarts, the skills and the friends to get you through these tough times with nary a scratch.

We’re proud of what we’ve done and what we’ve built.

Not only are we prepared and eager for the challenges ahead… but we’ve also amassed a legion of followers throughout the nation and the world who we’re oh so confident are leaders in their own communities these days.

If you’re looking to join them and want to boost your survival Know-How, here are just a few of the fun but useful essays we’ve published.

We’ll share more throughout the coming days. We think you’ll find them quite useful… and certainly nobody else is talking about these things.

And remember, if you’re a Manward Letter subscriber, you have access to The Manward Guidebook: 47 Survival Skills for Modern Life. It’s on the site.

Read the links above… celebrate what you have… and stay safe.

Times are tough around the world right now. We’ll get through it together.

The Triad will lead the way.

Note: In times like these, we want to hear from you more than ever. What are you seeing, doing and worried about? What do you need help with? We may not be able to help, but perhaps a fellow reader will. We’re in it together. Drop us a line at mailbag@manwardpress.com.