She raised her hand to his cheek and gave the weakest smile in history. Then her eyelids began to sag and her smile completely faded. “Ritchie…â€? she whispered almost inaudibly. “Mom.â€? Ritchie choked out through his tears. “Please don’t go!â€? he said softly. Christine’s eyes closed and her face turned pale, but Ritchie refused to let the already gone mother go. “No, wake up mom, come on it’s too soon. WAKE UP , PLEASE !â€? Ritchie began to sob. “PL-EA-SE…MOM…come back…â€? he said between his tears. But all the pleading in the world wouldn’t help. She was gone and there was Ritchie alone on the linoleum tile in his kitchen all alone….