Good People.

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Over the weekend, I learned a sad truth that an old man had died. He actually died during the week, but the news eventually spread by the weekend, which was when I heard it. Now, while he wasn’t really the most popular person in the world, it was hard not to know him. I’ve known him for as long as possible, hell, even since I was a teenager and still going to school.

He used to see newspapers, he walked around with a horn and a bag that held loads of newspapers from several news agencies. He walked with a slight limp, and every few steps, he pumped his horn, announcing his presence. And thus, he went from house to house, selling newspapers until he ran out of them.

This was his hustle, and he did it diligently. I never knew much about him, I just knew that this was what he did. Every day when I went to school, I always saw him, and sometimes, I saw him in the afternoons as well as when I returned home. Day in, and day out. And that is the reason I’ll always be able to recognize him everywhere.

I didn’t think much of it when I graduated last year and returned to Lagos, and I saw that he was still selling newspapers. Every morning, he kept walking with a limp, blowing his horn as he delivered the papers without fail. It happened, and happened… and eventually, he stopped turning up. I still didn’t think much of it. As a matter of fact, he never really crossed my mind until a neighbor told me about him. It was then I found out that he had been ill for several months now, and he had only just succumbed to the sickness.

You see, his is one of those stories of elderly people whose grown-up kids have basically abandoned them, which was why he had to fend for himself, even with his bad leg. Doing the same thing every day. It was also now that I learned that the landlords of this area usually contribute to pay for his rent, if not, he would have been living in the streets. But that wasn’t even the most. Nobody reads newspapers anymore, not with smartphones and news articles, but this man was always selling out when he was active.

It turned out that they were patronizing him not because they needed it, but simply to support him. Some of them go as far as buying one copy of each newspaper, others buy as much as they can afford, just to get him to sell quickly and go home so he can rest. For someone who had been active in the neighborhood for so long, the neighborhood had really taken care of him.

The man had been through a lot, and I’m happy that he’s most likely in a better place now. At least, I heard that he was surrounded by friends when the final moment came upon him, which was a good thing. Many times, stories like these don’t make it to the internet because people who do these things from their genuine hearts don’t really wanna publicize it. That’s why only bad news trends. You might wonder why one of them didn’t just bring out a large chunk of money to change his life, but the truth is, they couldn’t. Everyone simply did what they could, and it was enough. They paid his rent and kept him in business. In 2025, if there’s anyone who can do that for you with no strings attached, raise your hands!

It’s good to always hear stories like these, reminding us that there are still good people in this world. While differences and conflicts keep tearing us apart, it’s good to know that maybe your next-door neighbor is a sweet soul that you can count on, should anything ever happen.

There’s still hope for people in this world.

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_{Thank you for reading. Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below, I would love to know what you’re thinking. Till we meet in the next post.}

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_{N.B: All images used in this post are mine. The thumbnail was designed using Canva.}

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