Nancy Nelson

During the pandemic, many people began devoting their time to passion projects with a simple mission of helping others. Some knitted, cooked, baked, beaded, started gardening, or tailored clothes for others, while others distributed food to those in need. Some sang, made music, danced, or painted to spread joy in the world through art. During that time, I began creating one happy dance video every day at my Yukon wilderness cabin to spread joy, hope, and positivity. At the same time, in another small community, Fort Frances in Ontario, two sisters, Cassandra Star and Callahan Armstrong, shared joy through singing. They gained widespread recognition by singing "An Easter Hallelujah," which was viewed by millions of people on their YouTube channel. However, I had no knowledge of their work. Two years later, destiny brought us all together. Despite my initial hesitation, the universe motivated me to organize a Bhangra dance workshop in Fort Frances, where these two sisters were in attendance. I was impressed by how quickly they learned the Bhangra moves I was teaching the group of local residents. After the workshop, the Armstrong sisters and I had a chance to talk about our pandemic stories. Next morning, Callahan and I joined our joyful forces to make a happy dance video to double up the joy, hope, and positivity. In the video, in addition to the beautiful waters of the Rainy River, the US is on the left side and Canada is on the right side of us, with both countries present. Another fun fact: the vast majority of Callahan's and my fans are located in Canada and the US. Therefore, this location was particularly fitting for us to make a video for those who watched us and sent hundreds of heartfelt and handwritten letters when North America was almost shut down due to the pandemic. Smile and receive the joy, hope, and positivity dispatch, TIMES TWO!