I met Ron Dotson eight or nine years ago.

He read Running To The Mountain, a book I wrote about my year on a mountain with Thomas Merton.’s Journals, and came all the way from Ohio to track me down and meet me. He remembers driving up to the first Bedlam Farm. I wasn’t home; Maria was; he stopped to ask her if he could take some pictures. She was awfully nice, he said, and she said sure.

(This photo will join my Portrait Gallery – people I love or respect. It was taken at Jean’s Place in Hoosick Falls today.)

On that early trip, he ran into me in Scott Carrino’s cafe a day or so later. He introduced himself. We talked, and we became friends.  We never pushed it or talked about it. It just happened.

We have stayed in touch. Ron has followed my life and shared his. He showed up at one of our Open Houses.

On the surface, Ron and I have nothing in common. But that is not true in reality. We have a lot in common. Ron is a person of deep faith. He said he found God when he was 12 and has been with him ever since. I am always looking for God.

Ron does not live the way I do, but he is, to me, a role model who represents the best in men – kindness, duty, empathy, faith,  devotion to family, and generosity.

Ron is a very proud Marine.  He wears his Marine cap everywhere he goes.

I joined the National Guard to stay out of the war; Ron went to Vietnam and volunteered as a Marine medic, one of the most difficult and dangerous jobs in the military in wartime. Medics were a particular target for the Viet Cong; they knew killing them would demoralize the soldiers and deprive them of medical care so many urgently needed.

Every medic in Ron’s unit was killed. He narrowly missed being killed. He was shot and severely wounded. He recovered, came home to Ohio, became a pastor, and ministers to the needy, the vulnerable, and the elderly. He has three children; his wife works as a teacher with autistic children.

When he recovered, he answered a different calling: doing good – something important that we have in common.

Tomorrow, he and I will visit the Mansion Memory Care unit; we often talk about his work as a pastor and our work with the memory challenged and the elderly. I’m bringing Zinnia to show him our therapy work; he has a sweet Spaniel and hopes to do therapy work with her one day.

If I’m lucky, I see Ron once yearly; he and his wife come east to vacation in nearby Vermont. He always lets me know he is coming, and I am always very happy to see him.  I don’t get a lot of visitors here, and I am always happy to see Ron.

This year, Ron joined my Bedlam Farm Blog Zoom group, and we see each other every Wednesday morning on the computer. It’s great to see him there.

Ron has a John Wayne streak in him. He never gains weight, gets sick, or gets rattled. I think it would take a great deal to upset him.

There is a brotherly vibe with us.

Ron has a remarkable back story; he should be the one writing books.  We talked this morning about climate change, and I told him I envied his trust in God. From Vietnam through life, Ron has always counted on God to get him through.

I told him I couldn’t come to terms with God, but my life has much spirituality. It’s all okay with him; like me, he doesn’t embrace the social media passion for telling other people what to do.

I suppose I am the literal opposite of a faithful Marine, but it doesn’t feel that way. Ron and I are brothers of different mothers; he is a brother in many ways, someone I can trust and respect. I am at ease sharing my secrets and concerns with him.

Among the things we share is contentment with our lives. We have everything we need and everything we want. We care about our spiritual work and lives. We love working with the needy and vulnerable. He has a wicked sense of humor.

He is a rock, a steady force in the universe. Ron doesn’t say too much in our Zoom meetings, but when he does, the words count. We caught up at lunch, talking quickly for over an hour.

We met for breakfast this morning at Jean’s diner in Hoosick Falls. Ron fit in there quickly and instantly. He had corned beef hash and potatoes; I had my usual: two eggs over light wheat toast and crispy potatoes.

We’ll meet at Memory Care tomorrow, and Ron is coming over for dinner on Thursday. I’m thinking of a Shift pizza.

He’s leaving on Saturday. I’ll miss him.