Respect For Those Who Join the Military

Today I'm thinking about a really close friend of mine that has joined the US Army National Guard. I remember about exactly a year ago when I was basically filling out this friend's own college applications for him wondering why he didn't seem to think that it was important. He wasn't interested at all. He is a very intelligent well rounded guy, who was the star player of the football team. Why wouldn't he want to go to college?
It wasn't until he had seriously talked to me about joining the military, that I realized college isn't for everybody. I have to be honest I have thought that some people join the military because they weren't smart enough for college, but now a year later I've come to find that joining the military means your guaranteeing yourself to do something meaningful and worthy. I gained a new perspective and much more respect for those who do this. I feel as though college is a great thing for the right type of people, but for those who don't take that path, they still are able to accomplish amazing things.