Time doesn't repeat itself. But it does rhyme.

I had a realization watching my son play with his cousin this past Thanksgiving while we were back in Atlanta.

Isaiah loves stairs (probably because we don’t have any in our one-bedroom apartment), and he was excitedly crawling up to the second floor of my aunt and uncle’s home. Instinctively, his cousin, my cousin’s daughter, who’s a few years older, ran over to be by his side, making sure his tiny 18-month-old legs didn’t miss a step and send him tumbling backward.

It was a sweet moment. But seeing the two of them, hand in hand, climbing those stairs had me reflecting on my own childhood, specifically my own time climbing those exact same stairs.

Decades earlier, my sister and I would follow our cousin up to her room, where we’d play Super Smash Bros on the GameCube or listen to whatever new songs she’d downloaded from iTunes (usually Keith Urban or Nickelback).

In that moment, it felt like an invisible torch had been passed. I was watching something I’d never seen before, yet it felt familiar because I had lived its earlier version.

And it made me think forward, too.

What other moments in my life will Isaiah experience from his perspective, echoing something from mine?

I talk a lot about being a first, meaning the first person in your immediate family to hit a certain milestone, whether that’s breaking the six-figure barrier or moving across the country. But so much of how we navigate those moments is shaped by our past. By the paths walked by our parents, our older siblings, and the generations before us.

So as you move through your own life and your own firsts, pay attention to the moments that may feel new.. but carry a shadow or a rhyme from somewhere familiar.

Time can teach us many lessons.
And this is the one it taught me recently.

This is my 30 Lessons by 30 series, where I’m sharing the top 30 lessons I’ve learned over the last three decades. Each week, I’ll also publish a deeper bonus lesson here on Substack that won’t live anywhere else.

You can follow the full series on my Instagram page here.

See you next week,

Colin