What is an example of metaphor in the memoir, Abandon Me?

One example of metaphor can be found in the way the author writes about the gifts she has received, and the experiences of her life, as a metaphor for the people she shares her life with. Her experiences are compared to "gifts" of opportunity for insight, and for self-understanding.

Another example is the film "Labyrinth", which is the focus of the author's contemplation in the book's Memoir IV. She portrays its story of a young girl caught in a labyrinth (a kind of maze-like puzzle) as she searches for her brother as, on one level, a source of comfort for her and her brother in their troubled childhood; and, on another level, a metaphor for their experiences of addiction (for the author) and mental illness (for her brother).