For over 30 years now an annual Christmas Tradition has been to take a drive across town to see the Christmas Home Display of Bob Rix in East Central Phoenix.
Bob and his Twin Brother Bern have had some of the most elaborate non-commercial Christmas Displays in the City and it has always been a delight to visit their Homes each year and have it be one of our Family's Christmas Traditions.
Four Generations of our Family and numerous Friends have taken the pilgrimage there each year for over three decades now and I look forward to it each year.
And this year was no exception... though in his 70's now, Mr. Rix is still delighting the Community with his Christmas Display and Open House, even while battling failing health and significant storm damage to his Home from a freak hailstorm earlier this year.
I really don't know if this will be the last year he can and will be doing it... and I know that when he finally calls it a Wrap I'll really miss this very Special part of our Holiday Tradition of going to see the Lights around Town.
Sure, we'll continue to drive around looking at Lights each Season... and there are a few other Special places that have been on our Traditional Light Watching Pilgrimage... but what Bob has always done is very Special and takes me back to Christmas Past while also enjoying Christmas Present.
And this year after taking Prince R on the trek to Mr. Rix's Home Display and telling Bob how very much I appreciate his annual Labor of Love all of these years that I have enjoyed it... before I had Children, when my Children were young and now taking my Grandchildren... I paused in his back Garden on the way out. It used to have a fabulous stocked Koi Pond and elaborate breathtaking displays out there too, but in recent years has been scaled down as Mr. Rix's health has sadly declined. And I said a Special Prayer for Dear Mr. Rix... and took a Photo into the blackness of the yard as a parting Memory of a very Special Place... and in the Photo there appeared to be something manifesting... and I took a closer look!!!
And then I saw them... the Orbs... about a dozen of them in fact... manifesting in the darkness and growing larger and brighter... and so I quickly snapped another Photo into the darkness Hoping to capture them!!!!!
And it was the most Magical and Amazing sight I have ever seen... even more outstanding that the Christmas Excess that Bob has always Wowed us with my Friends... in fact, I've never seen anything like this in my Life!
And I like to think that these are either some of the departed Spirits that enjoyed his efforts while on this side of Time and Eternity and now come back at this Holy Season for yet another visit to a man who has given much Joy to perfect strangers during the Holidays for so many years... or perhaps some of Heaven's Angels??? I really don't know as I don't have a logical explanation for what I Witnessed that Evening and managed to capture on film...
Thank You for the many, many years of Christmas Memories Mr. Rix... and God Bless You... Dawn... The Bohemian