My British children just asked me why we greet elders with 'good afternoon' at 9am

My 14-year-old daughter came back from school yesterday and asked me, 'Mum, why do Nigerians say good afternoon at 9am? Is it a joke?' I just looked at her. Then I looked at my 16-year-old son who was nodding like she had discovered something. I tell you, raising children abroad is a different kind of warfare.

I tried to explain that in Nigeria, we greet people based on respect, not the time. If you see your elder at 6am, you say good morning. If you see them at 10pm, you still say good evening. But if you see them at 9am and they are your senior, you say good afternoon because the morning is already gone for them. My daughter said, 'That doesn't make sense. Time is objective.' Na wa oh. I just told her, 'In this house, time is subjective when it comes to elders.'

Now my son wants to greet my husband with 'good morning' at 8pm because 'the sun is down.' My husband is Ghanaian and he said, 'If that boy tries that with me, I will show him what time it is.' I am just here watching my culture slowly die in real time. Abeg, tell me, how do you explain Nigerian greeting culture to a child who has only known British politeness?