In many Nigerian neighborhoods, the street is more than a place. It is a classroom, a playground, a meeting room, and sometimes a family. Children grow up knowing which neighbor sells the best akara, who to greet first in the morning, and which elder to avoid when football breaks a window.
On these streets, discipline did not belong to one household. Any adult could correct a child. Any success was celebrated by everyone. When someone cooked, the aroma fed the entire street and when someone cried, the pain was shared.
Today, many people have left those streets for cities and countries far away. Yet the values remain. Respect, resilience, community, and love. The street raised us before the world did.