After nearly seven years of living, studying and working in China, I'm returning to my country to pursue a new opportunity. I had intended to close this chapter of my life by writing a reflective piece about the things I've learned from my experiences in China. But before I could, a flurry of expatriate essays began to appear: the now-infamous "Why I'm Leaving China" letters.

It began earlier this month when 16-year China resident Mark Kitto published an article titled You'll Never Be Chinese, in which the successful entrepreneur explains his reasons for repatriating to the UK.

The article inspired a wave of "Why I'm Leaving China" letters by outgoing expatriates who blamed everything from air pollution, food safety concerns and bad business deals to disputes with China Central Television talk show hosts for their impending departures. The International Herald Tribune reported on the phenomenon under the headline Heading for the exits in China, and some people wondered whether an expat exodus was afoot.

But the articles soon provoked a rebuttal from an opposing camp of foreigners intending to live in China long-term. They challenged the "Why I'm Leaving China" letters' criticisms in articles, tweets, blog posts and comments that defended China's record of change and pointed to its huge potential.

What had begun as one expatriate's explanatory farewell letter evolved into a debate about the right and wrong reasons for leaving China. Eventually, satirical blog The China Daily Show poked fun at the trend with a "Why I'm Leaving China" parody of its own.

Both sides of the debate have their reasons, but none were the same as mine. Was it possible for a foreigner to leave China for some purpose other than escaping smog and social ills?

I almost decided not to write anything at all about my departure for fear of it being labeled as just another "Why I'm Leaving China" letter. But if I didn't write anything, I also risked being misunderstood.

So rather than writing about how living in China allowed me to acquire a new language, gain valuable international work experience, meet people from all over the world and inspired me to write a novel, I decided to scrap my original article idea and write this one instead.

This is my attempt to write an honest account of what it's like for a foreigner who is heavily personally invested in China to leave. At least for now.

China is rapidly reinventing itself and capturing the world's attention in the process. As some of the detractors pointed out, even China's sullied economic figures still far surpass those of the top performing Western economies. Even as the legendary pace of construction starts to ease, new cities are beginning the largest expansion the world has ever seen.

But one need not depend on the macroeconomic signs - growth curves and construction cranes - to see how much China is changing. Times may still be tough but, as many Chinese families will tell you, times have also never been better.

As thrilling as it is to live in a country that is racing forward, that isn't the thing I will miss. The truth is that the challenges and obstacles that foreigners may find themselves complaining about (myself included) are actually the things we secretly like the most.

There are the newly discovered, unmapped hutong, the interesting menu items without English translation and untapped niches for new business ideas that no one has tried before, probably for good reason. Even crossing the street can be an adrenaline rush.

These are the challenges that make every day an adventure, as well as provide an endless source of material for China stories. After we have left China, it's the challenges we will miss the most.

Ultimately, the "Why I'm Leaving China" letters - and the debate they started - are not about the reasons why foreigners should stay or leave, but about people's reasons for initially coming to China in the first place.

If we're honest with ourselves, few of us left our country and came to China because we wanted to lead a comfortable life. We came because we wanted a challenge. It's fine for foreigners to leave, but it isn't fine to pretend that China didn't deliver exactly what it promised.