"Oh China"

With the end of our first semester and the opening of the Harbin Ice Festival, there have been quite a few teachers from our organization staying in my home or with other teachers in the city. It has been a fun time of laughter while sharing our adventures as a newbie, or not so new person, in China.

While listening to the stories, I began to notice a somewhat unconscious yet reoccurring phrase/theme.

The stories all start with, “So the other day I was something, something…” and end with, “*sigh* oh China.”

“Oh China…” It’s a phrase said on the end of a sigh and usually punctuated with a laugh or chuckle. It says it all. It says, “Dear China, we love you but there are days we don’t understand you.” Or it may say, “Dear China, I love you but right now I don’t really like you.” Or at other times it simply says, “Oh China, you amaze and delight me.”

If you live in a foreign country, I bet you will find yourself doing the same thing. However, I wonder if I will come home and find myself saying, “Oh America…”