It's that time of year again, college acceptances are rolling in and college decisions are being made. It's also that time of year where everyone who does not choose to go to college feels different and self-conscious about their decision.

I went to college right out of high school, and sometimes I even question my decision. I now know people who took a semester off, who did something else besides college and I know many people who did not come back the second semester because they realized they made the wrong decision.

Read these words carefully; college is not for everyone.

I know a lot of high school teachers and faculty will encourage you to apply, they will talk to you about the benefits of going to college and the benefits of having one more degree under your belt on your resume.

What they forget to tell you is that there are so many people out there with no college degrees, doing just fine.

High schools pride themselves on the number of graduates who attend college the following year, so much that they forget school is not the path for everyone.

I am here to say, and to tell you that not going to college immediately or at all is not a decision to be ashamed of, it is not something in which you should have to feel you need to justify yourself for.

As I said, I came to college right off the bat, I knew to continue my education and furthering my degree was something I wanted to do, but it was also something my parents wanted me to do. Sometimes I wonder if I should have given myself a break. Sometimes I wonder if a semester or a year in-between high school and college would have been a smart decision. You can make some money, decides what you really want to do and then go to college and kick butt.

Another thing a lot of high schools refuse to acknowledge to the full extent is that we just completed 12 years of required school. We had no choice, we woke up at 6 am, put on clothing, sat in a classroom for 8 hours and then did homework and extracurricular activities every other minute. They forget that for 12 years, we never had a break.

Give yourself a pat on the back, and take a damn break!

The point of all of this is to say if you decide that college is not for you - that is okay. If you decide somewhere down the line college is for you, awesome. If you do not, awesome. At the end of the day, you know what is best for you and your path.

"Some people get an education without going to college. The rest get it after they get out" - Mark Twain