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I have had the English language in my life for as long as I can remember. Although my mother tongue is Swedish, I can not imagine what it would be like, not to know the meaning of the simple phrases that are used in everyday English. Since this language is so widely spread in the world, it seems almost impossible to manage without it. Even if you're not planning on going abroad, it's probably frustrating when the text on your TV, suddenly decides to stop running in the middle of your favourite american talkshow, and you have no idea what that mad screaming woman is saying, because you no longer have the swedish translation to help you overcome your lingustic difficulties. In times like that it might be good to have at least some knowledge of another language than your own, and that's why I'm very happy to say that I do. 
Naturally I am aware of the fact that my English is far away from being perfect, and I also know that there are areas in which I have to improve in order to become more secure in my usage of English. How I handle the language depends on the situation and how I choose to express myself. I believe my weaknesses are speaking and reading, so I probably have to work a bit harder with theese skills, while I, when it comes to writing and listening, feel more secure. In the following text I will explain why I think my strengths and weaknesses are divided into theese particular areas. 
I believe I'm very good at listening to the English language, and I can quite easily tell when something doesn't sound right or is grammatically incorrect. I often listen to English music, and try to comprehend what the songs are about. I suppose this has made me a better listener than I would have been without trying to analyse the songtexts. The kind of text that a song is made of is often easy to read, but longer texts, similar to the ones one would find between the covers of a book, sometimes make me really frustrated. If the text is too long or boring, my mind has a tendency to drift off, and several pages later, I find myself not knowing anything about what I've just read. This usually happens when I'm reading something that is more or less forced on me, but even when I read about something that interests me, I sometimes have problems with focusing on the written word. At such times I find it more entertaining to read the book out loud. Although I know that this method doesn't exactly spare me any time, I sometimes use it as a way of keeping myself informed with what is going on in the text. I have no other choice, than to hear myself, and by doing so, I find it easier to understand the plot. While reading out loud, I also get a chance to practice on my pronunciation. 
In the skill of speaking English, I feel rather secure, but to what extent I choose to use the language, that all depends on the situation. I would, for example, find it easier to speak English as an attempt to make my voice heard by a Dutch, than by a person who has the English language as his/her mother tongue. This is probably because the situation becomes more relaxed and natural, if I know that the person I'm talking to isn't going to correct my mistakes in his/her head, while listening to me. 
Of course a certain amount of correction is necessary when you want to improve your skills, and that's why I think it's good to have writing assignments. In some ways I feel more comfortable writing than I do speaking English. I guess that's because you get several chances to rethink and evaluate what it is that you actually want to say. In a speaking situation, there's always the pressure of getting it right the first time, while in writing, you're allowed to make mistakes, that you're able to correct, before the message meets the receiver. I wouldn't say I feel as if I'm a better writer than I am speaker of English, but I believe that writing is a more relaxed way of expressing oneself.
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