def send_message(self, index, message="Hello from python-ecobee!"):
        ''' Send a message to the thermostat '''
        body = {"selection": {
                    "selectionType": "thermostats",
                    "selectionMatch": self.thermostats[index]['identifier']},
                "functions": [{"type": "sendMessage", "params": {
                    "text": message[0:500]
                }}]}

        log_msg_action = "send message"
        return self.make_request(body, log_msg_action)