The death of a beloved spouse is a very jarring blow.

Rabbi Yohanan says: For any man whose first wife dies, it is as though the Temple was destroyed in his days…Rabbi Alexandri says: Any man whose wife dies in his days, the world is dark for him…Rabbi Yosei bar Hanina says: His steps get shorter…Rabbi Abbahu says: His wisdom fails.

Rabbi Shmuel bar Nahman says: Everything has a replacement, except for the wife of one’s youth…. A man dies only to his wife, and a woman dies only to her husband. (Sanhedrin 22a–b)