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English can be both a frustrating and a rewarding language. Exposed to countless conquerors, marauders and invaders, English became a patchwork of borrowed pieces which, whilst a rich and colorful language, had more exceptions to the rule than vice versa. Having spoken the language since childhood, a tendency to take the skills acquired over the years for granted has developed, until a rude shock involving a correction of my usage of English has made me realize that perhaps I am not quite as proficient in the language as I thought. Therefore, in this essay, I shall present my strengths and weakness in the four pillars of communication - reading, listening, speaking and writing.
	Having always read a lot, reading English comes quite easily to me. Understanding written text has only been problematic in cases where the terminology is completely foreign e.g. physics textbooks and such like. I remember what I have read quite easily, especially if interested in the subject. However, I sometimes have a tendency to read too fast, skimming the text instead of reading it, guessing the meaning of new words from their context rather than looking them up. This mostly happens when I am bored, or can predict what is to be said, and therefore wish to quickly come to the conclusion. Consequently, I then rarely recall what I have read. 
	My skills in listening are very much similar. When interested I pay attention. When not, I drift off. Again, as in reading, spoken English is not something I have problems understanding. Rather, my weaknesses have to do with my attention span.
	Speaking English is, obviously, something I find rather easy. I can say what I mean with very few problems, and unlike my spoken Swedish, I rarely have to think about how I formulate my sentences, or my choice of words (though some are put off by my blend of British diction and American pronunciation). My chief weakness in speaking involves my hunt for the right word, despite the fact that I may have several substitutes at the tip of my tongue. I often feel the limits of my vocabulary when speaking. Spoken English is also where my "Swenglish" is most obvious. I have been known to translate from Swedish to English and vice versa without even being aware of it. Since most of the individuals I speak with do the same, they cannot correct me.
	Writing is my weakest point in English. Spelling, grammar, word order etc. are rarely wrong, and I do not have problems formulating what I want to write. Putting pen to paper is not something I find daunting in any way. On the contrary, it is something I enjoy. Rather, my writing lacks purity. My sentences become too long and convoluted, filled with unnecessary pet words like "that", "however" and "also". These hinder the reader from clearly understanding what I write. I forget a reader cannot hear my voice, or see my facial expression. Human signals must be replaced with words, and lost in my train of thought, I write what I think without explaining my meaning. The fact that I rarely use commas only aggravates the problem. Also, my search for the right word hinders me even more when writing than when speaking. In the latter, body language, or just continuous talking, can make up for lack of eloquence, but when writing, I sometimes find myself staring into space, furiously thinking "what is that called?!". 
	Summarily, though my English is generally as good as any other native speaker's, it varies. The more I use English, the better my grasp of it is. Lately I have spoken more Swedish than English, resulting in a decline of my skills in using the latter. I get rusty very fast when not using a language, most noticeably in the size of my vocabulary. One forgets words one does not use, quickly, and it is galling to know that once upon a time I could have said something eloquently with ease, yet now I stumble over the words and phrases that previously came so easily to me.
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