Everyone grieves in their own way.
Some people take days, weeks, even months to deal with the loss of a loved one. Others opt to get back to their daily routine as soon as possible in hopes of regaining a sense of normalcy.
There is no right or wrong way to mourn.
Eagles coach Andy Reid shocked a lot of people by returning to the team on Wednesday, just a day after burying his oldest son, Garrett Reid, and three days after finding the 29-year-old dead in his dorm room at Lehigh University, where the Eagles are holding training camp.
His decision was surprising, considering he took a month off during the offseason in 2007, when both Garrett and younger brother Britt Reid were arrested on drug-related charges.
Those who know the way Reid is wired, however, were not all that taken aback when he strode onto the practice fields at Lehigh to conduct the Eagles' mock game in preparation for Thursday's preseason opener against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Reid is a workaholic who spends almost every waking moment - and even most sleeping moments - at the NovaCare Complex during the season. One person close to the team told me recently that Reid slept at home 16 days one season.
Speaking from personal experience, I can't criticize his decision to come back so soon.
When my father died on Nov. 14, 2007, I covered a fight at the Borgata in Atlantic City the next day. I took a few days off to help my mother with the funeral arrangements, write and deliver his eulogy - I broke down about halfway through - and spend time with my family. Two or three days later, I was back covering the Eagles.
When my mother died on Dec. 1, 2009, I went to Eagles practice two days later. My wife and I made the funeral arrangements, I wrote and delivered her eulogy - I broke down again just after I finished - and we spent time with family. Four days later, I was on a flight to Atlanta to cover the Eagles' game against the Falcons.
There was no way to ease my pain. In fact, it has never left. But immersing myself in my work helped me cope, enabled me to take my mind off the hurt for at least a little while.
Was I wrong?
