Many times, my Chinese colleagues, students and friends have told me how fortunate they are and how much they have benefited from me. Not so. I'm the one who has benefited by teaching English in China. I have met many people and made many friends. I have traveled China's vast continent and explored its rich culture. I have learned new skills. I have gained the experience of teaching all ages and a variety of subjects.

I have also been struck by the friendliness, hospitality and kindness I have encountered as a guest of this country. No matter how many times I ask people to help me translate, they never became weary of me. And my American friends will be astonished when I tell them, "In China, great battles are fought over who gets the honor of paying for the restaurant meal or the taxi fare."

By far my favorite activity and most enjoyable experience in China has been English Corner. Every city and school has at least one. Other countries where I have taught English have not caught on to this enormously beneficial tradition, even after I suggested it in a Korea Times editorial. The English Corner is where a foreigner can meet informal tour guides and translators and get to understand China. Most foreigners make perfunctory visits to English Corner, if any. Who wants to stand outside in the dark, swatting mosquitoes and dripping sweat? Who wants to be in an overcrowded room, crushed by dozens of listeners, all of them vying for a chance to speak? Who wants to answer the same questions over and over? Who wants to do any of this on a Friday or Saturday night? I do.

Of course, like other foreigners, I have been frustrated, irritated and outright disgusted by many cultural and personal habits: hoiking and spitting; chattering during lectures, meetings and concerts; pushing and shoving in public; refusing to get out of my way; grabbing things out of my hand; crowding around me; ignoring my requests and instructions; borrowing my possessions without my permission.

In America, "No" means "No." In China, "No" means "Ask me again" or "Do it again." In America, if someone quotes an outrageous price, you walk away. In China, you stay and bargain. Simple matters seem to require an inordinate amount of time, discussion and commotion. Restaurants are so loud that I sometimes have to yell so my friends can hear me. And Westerners are quite shocked when they see children using sidewalks instead of toilets.

Anarchy, thieves, beggars and informal taxi drivers at the train and bus stations; cooks using me as their guinea pig; shopkeepers charging me "foreigner tax;" talking in a loud voice and even yelling as standard operating procedure; inconsistent product availability, chronic maintenance problems; smoky, noisy, dirty Internet cafes overrun by teenage boys turning them into game rooms; crowded city buses; squat toilets; left-handed zippers; and of course, shy students.

All these things affect my disposition. But my impression of the Chinese people and Chinese culture has been overwhelmingly positive.

I was in China in November 2002, when the 16th National Congress of the Communist Party of China was held. This prompted me to do much research on China's modern history and recent policy. I learned about China's bitter but heroic 150 year struggle against many scourges: imperialism, colonialism, hegemonism and other external enemies; feudalism, civil war, anarchy and other internal threats; poverty, illiteracy, short life expectancy and other manifestations of these problems. Against all odds and in spite of big mistakes, China has overcome aggression, oppression, exploitation, invasion, plunder, division, intimidation and reproach, from within and without.

I also learned about xiaokong, the motive and goal of all China's spokesmen and leaders from Sun Yat-sen on. Roughly translated, xiaokong means general widespread prosperity. There have always been disagreements, sometimes tumultuous disagreements, about how to achieve xiaokong. But the desired destination has always been the same.

I came to admire Deng Xiaoping more than any other modern Chinese leader. He was a strong, resilient man.

Deng ended the dogmatism and rivalry that had plagued China's leadership for decades. He put China on the path to modernization, reform and development. He ended isolation, hostility and suspicion toward the international community. He smoothly transferred Hong Kong from the British and wisely established the "one country, two systems" policy. His successors gained membership in the World Trade Organization and won the right to host the 2008 Olympics.

Deng's life parallels China's modern history: He endured, resisted and prevailed, even when there seemed to be no hope. We would have gone home, Deng made history.