Just as in a marriage, each partner is a witness to the life of the other (from Shall we Dance), in our own personal life it is our parents who form the contours of our life, having seen us from the time we were born. (I guess older siblings would fall in this category too). In fact, Mom gives us the anchor from the time we are conceived... . They are also our point of reference. So, when the parents pass on, one has to be conscious of, or consciously try to re-form these contours to keep the point of reference and put our lives in context.....