For over a dozen years now my email signature has included the Zoroastrian mantra, “Think good thoughts, say good words, do good deeds.”

This 3,500+ year old religion is one of the oldest monotheistic religions (believing in just one supreme God) and likely had significant influence on Judaism, Christianity, and Islamic beliefs about a messiah, heaven, and hell.

As we head into the 20th year of this relatively new century, I wonder if the followers of some of these newer religions couldn’t take some time to pay respectful attention to the earlier beliefs in Yahweh… the supreme host, (God).

What if we started each day with good, kind thoughts?

What if we chose good, kind words before we spoke?

What if we chose good, kind deeds to do daily?

What if we were to nurture the good in any faith we have, be it a faith in God, a faith in humanity, or faith in ourselves to be loving, thoughtful, and kind. We are put on this earth for a relatively short time, how can we maximize the good that we do while we are here?

The winter solstice has past us, here in the northern hemisphere. As the days get longer and brighter, let us think of ways that we can shed our light on others.

Happy holidays!