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Why don't I just say that I'm German?
It is hardly a secret that I am German. Still, when introducing myself I prefer to declare myself as European. What gives?
Well, the truth is that I have grown up in a way that quickly dissociated me from Germans and German culture. An interesting coincidence of beginning to learn proper English in school just at the time in my life in which I became rather disconnected from society lead me to largely tab out of the German reality around me.
The result of that is a person with no unique specific - at least socially. I grew up being used to existing in a world full of all varieties of cultures and influences and had no reason to discriminate between them. Spanish, Canadians, Indians, they're all the same people to me. Still, “somewhere in Europe” was perhaps the closest thing I was able to call home. That's the demographic I spent most of my time with and with whomst I have the largest overlap. I really do feel like I feel for Europe what others feel for their own neighborhood, or maybe even their country.
For me, to say Europe is my home is to say that “just” Germany isn't my home. If I restricted myself to just the German parts in me, a lot - if not most - of me would be lost. I have more overlap with Europe as a whole than I have overlap with any one specific European country, including Germany.