Day 17 - Alamogordo, NM - Conclusion

I was going to write about the stop in Roswell, going to the International UFO Museum, and then on to Alamogordo, NM.

And I tried to put it into words.

But I couldn't.

Because something else happened today.

Today, what I've done here with The Bucket List directly impacted my day with "The Kids."

I've debated about writing about this.

But the reason why The Bucket List resonates with you is because I'm being open about everything that is happening.

So why stop now?

So here's what happened.

I found out what some of you were up to.

I don't know the details but I know that some of you were trying to put something big together.

Something that came fromn a VERY kind and caring place.

Something that would be a surprise.

Something huge.

At first, I was so touched. I couldn't believe that people would want to do something like that.

But then, I'm not going lie, I got a little scared. I've been concerned from the get go about "The Kids" reaction to the The Bucket Trip.

They've been totally fine with it so far. But I didn't want anything to jeopordize the good will they had built up for the The Bucket Trip.

I had to put a stop to whatever was going on but I didn't know where to start. That's why I posted the status update that basically said "Hey, just send us your thoughts and well-wishes!"

I wasn't joking. They mean SO MUCH right now.

After that, I needed to tell my Mom and Jack what was going on.

So I sat down with them and explained the people just want to help. That I heard there was talk about donations or raising money.

My Mom smiled, "Money is the last thing that we need right now. The only thing I need is time."

They were amazed that people were thinking about doing something big.

And then I saw something that I hadn't seen on this trip.

Jack got choked up.

"If people wanted to make a donation in Johni's name to an ALS organization....well...that would be awesome."

For the first time on this trip, Jack is on the verge of tears.

Folks, you got to the "ungottable" tonight.

It was dinner time and none of the restaurants around her had strong reviews on Yelp so we decided that I would pick up some pizza and beer for dinner.

"The Kids" got a suite this time so there was plenty of room to have dinner in their room.

We figured out where are next stop is going to be and then I retired to my room.

On the way up, I saw that I had a message from one of you to check The Bucket List - The Finish Line.

And that's when I saw the candles, and the notes, and the likes.

And I went through every one of them.

Once again, with tears streaming down my cheeks.

You can't put a dollar amount on those messages.

They are precious and they mean the absolute world to me.

From the bottom of my heart, thank you.