It was the roughest time of his short life and Richard Parker Jr was hurting. His heart was heavy and filled with pain and he couldn't stop crying. His father had been killed just three days earlier in a car accident and it had devastated him and his whole family.

Senior was his everything to Richard including being his hero and the best friend he had in the whole wide world. Richard had his whole life ahead of him and he knew his father would have wanted him to move forward. They would hang out together and do so many things in each other’s company. Richard and his father would talk for hours at a time about anything and everything. He would tell his father about his passions for science and his dreams of becoming a physicist and mathematician. Richard wanted to go to one of the top universities in the country to earn his degree in science. It brought an instant smile to his face when he thought about how happy and excited his father would be when he shared his dreams with him.

Richard senior was always very supportive of his son no matter what he did or wanted to do. He would miss his father's encouragement now, but Richard would never forget all of the things his father had taught him. His mother was concerned for Richard because she knew how close he and his dad were. Belinda felt that only the fullness of time would help heal her son but for now she just wanted to support him. Richard was now the man of the house and he knew his father would have wanted him to help take care of his little brother and two sisters as well as his mother.

As time went on the family began to adjust to their loss and move on with their lives. Belinda and Richard would sometimes sit on the sofa and look through the family photo album at the pictures they both took with his dad. They would cry and laugh together as they talked about the fun times they had had with him.

They say time heals all wounds which was, to some extent true as Richard and his family were slowly able to move on. Belinda returned to her work as Richard prepared to graduate from high school and go on to college. He was accepted into Eton thanks to his excellent grades and it was hard for Richard to control his excitement about attending this new college. Everything was going great for him and his family as life got easier for them.

There was however still one thing Richard wanted to do but couldn't bring himself to do it and that was visit his father's grave. Everyone had been to the cemetery to visit except for Richard because he was still having problems dealing with his father's death. Although months had passed since the accident, it still felt fresh to Richard as he struggled to cope with it.

Sometimes he would walk by the cemetery to see if he was ready to go inside but then he would turn and walk away. This would go on for years because his father's death was still far too painful for him to bear.

By now, Richard had made all of his dreams come true and had accomplished everything he’d set out to do. He worked as a physicist now at a nearby science laboratory and taught math at a local university. Richard married his girlfriend Davina who he had met in school and she gave birth to their son Richard III to carry on the name.

After spending time with his own son, Richard felt he was finally ready to go visit his father's grave. It was a balmy Sunday afternoon when he and his son made the trip together and they both walked up to his tombstone. While standing there looking at his father's grave, Richard became very emotional as the tears started coming down his face. After gathering himself Richard began talking to his father again, simply telling him how well the family were doing. Richard told him how he had made all of his dreams come true and then he finally introduced his father to his grandson.

The sun was going down and Richard had spent several hours talking to his father and it was a great relief to him. It was just like old times again and Richard realized that while his father may be gone physically, he was still with him spiritually.

That day was father’s day, and Richard consciously began a tradition of going to the cemetery, and talking to his father once a week. It was rewarding for Richard because his father had always inspired and encouraged him and even in death it was to be no different. Richard was excited about where he was in his life and where he was going. But the icing on the cake for Richard was the fact he had got to continue to be with his dad.