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Many investors carry around their favourite Warren Buffett lines, and employ them as a sort of market mantra.

For me, that’s a couple of sentences near the top of an opinion piece (subscription required) he penned for The New York Times on Oct. 16, 2008, during the depths of the financial crisis when U.S. banks were failing, the economy was crumbling, stocks were plummeting and investors were panicking.

“In the near term, unemployment will rise, business activity will falter and headlines will continue to be scary,” Mr. Buffett wrote. “So, I’ve been buying American stocks.”

Why do I like this quote so much?

It bears Mr. Buffett’s typical wit, in this case juxtaposing a dismal forecast with an upbeat response. Also typical, it offers an approach that anyone can embrace, from the sophisticated pro to the student dipping her toes into the market for the first time.

Sure, the line contains some savvy market timing which, in hindsight, was pretty good: The S&P 500 had already fallen 42 per cent by the time the article appeared. The index would hit rock bottom in just five months and then embark upon a rebound of nearly 70 per cent by the end of 2009.

But the most important takeaway for me is Mr. Buffett’s long-held belief that bad news can offer good buying opportunities, and vice versa.

I mention this because Mr. Buffett is just days away from retiring as chief executive of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. at the end of this year. He’ll remain chairman of the company, but the world’s most beloved investor, now 95, is – in his words – “going quiet.”

This is a big deal.

Mr. Buffett has been a source of inspiration for decades. Investors will no longer have new annual letters to read and savour for their folksy wisdom.

No more pilgrimages to Omaha, where Mr. Buffett would preside over Berkshire Hathaway annual meetings.

And no more scrutinizing Berkshire Hathaway’s equity holdings for new insights into what Mr. Buffett has been buying or selling.

I’ve never gone to Omaha and I’m not a Berkshire Hathaway shareholder. But I’m getting a bit sad thinking about this.

Nonetheless, there are a few reasons why we shouldn’t despair.

For one, Mr. Buffett’s wisdom lives on, and will probably never get stale. His annual letters, going back to 1977, are readily available on Berkshire Hathaway’s website. There are also books, including Alice Schroeder’s The Snowball: Warren Buffett and the Business of Life.

For another, we can invest in his legacy, or at least follow it.

Berkshire Hathaway remains a fascinating company that is currently sitting on over US$380-billion in cash. That may be a sign of caution about today’s stretched valuations or possibly a means to a fresh start next year for the company’s new leadership.

The stock is back to where it was 10 months ago, which suggests that investors aren’t so sure what Mr. Buffett is leaving behind.

That leads us to a third reason not to despair: It has never been a good idea to bet against Warren Buffett.

What are your thoughts about his legacy? Let me know at dberman@globeandmail.com