third times a. . . how does that go again?

I lived in Wyoming for a few years in a town by the name of Jackson Hole. Truly it is God's country and has everything any outdoor-all-things-in-harmony-lover could ever dream of. In the summer, there are live gun shows at Pearl Ave. There's hiking, paragliding, kayaking, repelling, and the list goes on. The winters there promote a different mood. Granted there is the usual skiing and snowboarding. There's plenty of snow to go around. In fact, I imagine the man who wrote "Let it snow" would be sing a remix there along the lines of "FOR EVERYONE'S SAFETY, PLEASE STOP". At an elevation of 6200, it can take a good half hour just to chip the ice off your windshield. One night, I was in my friend's car going home from a movie. I was scheduled to work security that night at a hotel resort 12 miles out of town in a resort village. Something inside my head was fired up to run to work. I was pumped and predetermined to challenge myself. On top of this INSANE idea, it was starting to snow hard. There was a weather alert for a blizzard coming through town. Like my senseless 18 year old crazy, stupid self...I didn't care. So we get to my friend's house and were going to play a game of pool inside when I pulled my hoodie over my head and zipped up and hit play in my mental playlist of T'Pau with a little bit of heart and soul then booked it in the middle of the three of us talking. They stopped and watched me without words disappear down the street into the snowfall. It felt so good, breathing in the frigid air. Along the highway I maybe got 3 miles into the journey when my friend pulls up beside me and has me get in. I was grateful for his heroism but the ambition inside of me needed to keep going. We pulled into a grocery store and got out about to enter the store. I tightened my hoodie and continued running. He shouts in a devastating attempt to recapture my sanity; "WHAT AM I GOING TO TELL YOUR DAD WHEN YOU'RE AN ICE POP?" A voice slowly fading while moving into the darkness; ".....just tell'em I love'em...." The storm grew more intense with fewer cars on the road. There was a bright glow reflecting off the thick clouds to light the way. 7 miles into the run, another car stops by to see if I need a ride to which I politely declined. The legs kept pushing and moving. The heat was enough to keep my blood flowing. 10 miles in a trucker pulled over to offer a lift. At that moment, many thoughts gathered, one of them was maybe God saying to me; "Take this or you will die." So I stopped and just climbed in.