It is said that the more precious the stone is, and the more valuable the mineral deposits are, the deeper one needs to look. What is truely precious is not to be found on the surface. The most expensive ruby found in Burma, less than the size of a child’s knuckle bone was found at a depth of over 2,000 feet in the mountainous regions to the immediate east of the Himalayan chain. The diamond mines of South Africa routinely dig past 3,000 feet. The higher the price, it seems, the deeper the dig. The same can be said in the dark alleyways and back lanes of Geylang. Here, by the electric lanterns that buzz redlight among the young men who stumble and fall into the ‘other side of mid-night’, you will find strength, purity and yes, even faith, if you look hard enough. In the simplicity of your search, you would come across women whose untouchable lives tell a story of ruin and devastation that could fill all the shelf space of the National Library. Behind each one of these suffering lambs is a suffering family, a network of broken businesses all tied together by the poverty of rural Asia.