We feel these unexpected losses because, to an extent that we seldom realize, we come to identify ourselves with the circumstances of our lives. Who we think we are is partly defined by our roles and relationships, those we like as well as those we don’t. But the bonds go deeper even than that. Our whole way of being—the personal style that makes you recognizably “you” and me “me”—is developed within and adjusted to fit a given life pattern. The very complaining that we do is part of that style.
