Cooper was also 10 when he lost his father in 1978 at age 50 after a heart attack. Colbert told Cooper the loss of his father and brothers “shattered” his and his mother’s lives, but it did not “destroy” them. “It’s a gift to exist,” Colbert told Cooper, “and with existence comes suffering. Grief itself is a natural process that has to be experienced.”Cooper admitted he always assumed he would be dead by age 50, like his father. Colbert has learned to accept his losses, but describes his grief as “like living with a beloved tiger.

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