Mystic Nymph: How well do you speak English?

I'll let you in a little revelation about my favorite usernames in my virtual sites. First is about my Mikimoto Angel pen name. Mikimoto is a famous brand of pearl accessories in America. I first saw that brand in Vogue Magazine. I got mesmerized by that label, and I thought of using it. I just added Angel from my name "Angela". Thus, the formation of Mikimoto Angel.

For my other pen name Mystic Nymph, the word mystic really came from the show Mystic Knights of Tir Na Nog. I used to be so hooked to that show. I am also obsessed with mythologies, and nymphs are mythical creatures depicted as beautiful young women who are considered as guardians of objects and places in nature. Thus, the evolution of Mystic Nymph.

Tuesday, July 8, 2008

How well do you speak English?

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The film Pygmalion showed how an English expert transformed an ordinary florist into a fine lady. Professor Higgins has a formula for turning Eliza into a lady. He brought her up in a lifestyle that is far from the ordinary. He also taught her things , from the simple to the complicated ones, that are needed to be learned as a duchess-like woman.

There are many things that I would like to get rid of with the way I speak English. I believe that even though it is not our native language, we should still be conscious in dealing with it. I could say that it really creates a big impact when you know the language very well.

I, for one, would want to improve my English speaking skills. I don't think I'm already that good. If I could fix three things about the way I speak English, those would probably be my intonation, fluency and vocabulary.

Intonation because there are a lot of times that I get so conscious with the rising and lowering of the tone in a sentence. Sometimes I tend to forget when should I raise my voice in a question. The problem with me is that I speak in a passive tone for neutrality's sake. If that is so, nobody would correct me if I use the wrong tone.

The second one is my fluency because I have a tendency to forget everything that I'm supposed to say whenever I talk to someone in English. Again, it's because of consciousness. I stutter and stop in mid-sentences. That happens many times already.

The last one is my vocabulary. I still want to learn more words and other idiomatic expressions in English. I think those could help me a great deal. With lots of those in my memory bank, I believe I will be much better.

I firmly believe that everything is just in the mind. Nothing gets difficult when you believe you can. We must think that we are good at something so that nothing can beat us up.