STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:
Muslims marked the beginning of the holy month of Ramadan this week. For roughly the next three weeks, Muslims who are able are told to fast from dawn to dusk.
NOEL KING, HOST:
But Salma Hasan Ali wanted to teach her kids that Ramadan is about other things than just fasting.
SALMA HASAN ALI: It's about doing good, about being kind, about expressing gratitude.
INSKEEP: So she started the 30 Days, 30 Deeds blog. Every day for the whole month, she and her kids would do one good deed and write about it for family and friends.
KING: And now it's a tradition. Every year, they pick a different theme for the blog, like gratitude or inspiring personal stories.
ALI: While these themes are very much a part of Ramadan, I think they underline all our faith traditions and all of us who cherish community and kindness.
INSKEEP: Now, 10 years after starting this project, Ali is compiling some of those stories into a book called "30 Days: Stories Of Gratitude, Traditions And Wisdom."
ALI: During this challenging year, when we've been isolated from each other, this may be a good time to put some stories out there that can reconnect us.
KING: One of those stories is about her dad, who loved sweets, but he always saved his desserts for her. And to her, this was the lesson.
ALI: Be generous, overly generous. Be kind, overly kind. Spoil people with uncommon hospitality.
KING: Ramadan kareem to all.
(SOUNDBITE OF HANDBOOK'S "INNER STIRRINGS") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.