On the First Day of School, I Flipped Open a Box, Only for a Pair of Red Underwear to Land on My Head

I headed to college orientation alone, carrying my luggage and wearing the distinctive mark of Tibet on my face: the red flush caused by the high altitude. The campus was packed with people, and I wandered around looking as lost as a headless fly. Just then, a box came hurtling toward me. I swiftly drew the riding crop wrapped around my waist and whipped the box to pieces in midair. A dozen or so pairs of underwear went flying in every direction. As luck would have it, one landed right on my forehead…