Auf der Innotrans begegnet, leider nicht angesprochen

I visited the InnoTrans trade fair on Thursday (September 24). Around 2:00 PM, near the booth of the Japanese manufacturer Ongakukan (which featured two driving simulators). She was wearing a white T-shirt with a transgender-themed blue, pink, and white design in the center. She carried a dark-colored backpack that also displayed a transgender-colored pin and what appeared to be a Deutsche Bahn logo. She wore glasses and had shoulder-length hair similar to mine, though hers had a brownish-yellow hue, whereas mine is jet black. She said "Hallo" to me, but I wasn't in a great state of mind at the time—even speaking normally felt like a bit of a struggle—so I didn't respond immediately. Perhaps noticing my lack of reaction, she added, "It was just a simple greeting." I stood there until she disappeared into the crowd. I tried looking in the direction she had gone, but it was clearly in vain. It was a wonderful and unexpected surprise to have someone—a fellow transgender person similar to myself—reach out to me like that.

I’ve been a railway enthusiast for over a decade. I’m currently learning German and preparing for the B1 exam. I dream of finding an apprenticeship (*Ausbildung*) in the railway sector, yet I feel increasingly lost about the future and often doubt whether I’m capable of doing the job. I feel exhausted right now; even English—a language I’ve been exposed to since elementary school—feels stressful. Still, I often unconsciously think back to that chance encounter at InnoTrans, and after much thought, I decided to share the story.