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A matter of months after this photo was taken, Sonam died suddenly of Meningitis. At the time, she was 18 years old, mother of two boys, and a third baby on the way.

When we first moved to this neighbourhood, Sonam befriended me and called me into her home, only metres from where we now live. I remember wondering whether her brother was on drugs (and later found out several of her brothers were). The house was tiny in floor space but built of brick, 3 storeys high, with a shop on the ground floor opening to the main alley.

A couple of years later, I saw the family regularly again, as we helped Sonam's mum Shayra get treatment for severe abdominal pain. By then Sonam was married and Shayra had moved to a rented jhuggi (hut) near the road; their house had somehow been dissolved by drugs and weddings.

Now Sonam's two sons are with the two grandmothers – the younger now 4 years old living with Shayra and her two remaining unmarried daughters, and one son who has managed to come clean.

Sonam's story is worth telling, not because it's so unusual, but because it's quite typical. In every family we know in this poor neighbourhood, there are many issues. Almost every home has had a child die. Drug and alcohol abuse is widespread, hand-in-hand with violence and crime. Many families have a member in jail. Most families are lacking for basic identity documents, and so are locked out of government assistance schemes. Some families (including Sonam's) have no literate members, so are at a big disadvantage in a rapidly changing world.

Please pray for ...

- Sonam's sons to grow up with food, education, and love

- the Indian government to provide better and more public health care for the poor (free government health care is available in theory, but inadequate to the needs of the population)

- more people to "live simply, so others may simply live" - a more just distribution of the world's resources

Did you know ...

Islam puts a very high value on God's revelation through the Quran. Muslims also believe in God's revelation to previous prophets: Taurat (the Law) was revealed to Moosa (Moses), the Zaboor (Psalms) to Dawood (David), and the Injeel (Gospel) to Isa (Jesus). However they are taught that these books no longer exist in their original forms, and present day editions can't be taken as reliable truth. The Quran was revealed to Mohammed and still exists in its original form. It supersedes previous books & is a complete guide to life & faith.

[Servants works in a number of Islamic settings, including India and Indonesia. This month is the month of Ramadan (also known as Ramazan), the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, which lasts about 30 days. It is a month of fasting, in which participating Muslims refrain from eating and drinking during daylight hours and is intended to teach Muslims about patience, spirituality, humility and submissiveness to God. Each day this month we will be putting reflections, stories, and information about Islam on this website to help you learn more and pray for our Muslim friends.]