EXCLUSIVE: Jasmine Curtis-Smith On How You Can Become A Better Person While Coping With The Pandemic

Jasmine is currently in La Union! She took full advantage of heading over to the North to check up on her very own business (a hostel!) and also to enjoy a much-awaited breather away from the city. "I'm by the beach!" she smiles. She also admits, however, that it's really been tough on her, as a business owner who was just about to enjoy a new world of entrepreneurship. "Walang pinili," she adds, in terms of who and what the COVID-19 crisis has affected.

Like a billion others in the world, Jasmine is taking things day by day in this new world we live in. It's an unfamiliar habit to her, as she's used to being out and about but she's found ways to accept and work around this new normal. We rushed into too many things this year, Jasmine reflects, and suddenly, here came the pandemic and it forced us to do things we didn't want to do and become people we never thought we could become. "It's incredible that it's given us that time," Jasmine muses. Her main lessons? Sure, there are a lot of things to take care of, but care for yourself, too. And allow your priorities to be rearranged; don't fight that, let it happen.

"Gigil" is a keyword for how Jasmine initially wanted to spend her 26th year on earth. With all her many, exciting plans for the year placed in the backburner (or cancelled altogether), she came to the realization that she was rushing to experience so many things while in motion but failing to appreciate everything else when all is still and quiet. "Take a breather," she begins. "This is happening to us, giving us a different motion in our direction... It's so much bigger than what we thought life is. Plans change. And I think that's the biggest thing it's taught me, and I love to plan!" she jokes. For the first time, she's seriously re-evaluating the kinds of things she wants to do, what's important to her, and even the kind of people she wants to surround herself with, enjoying the stillness and coping with the great pause, overall.

It's only in September that Jasmine has let herself spend so much time outdoors. For seven months, she was stuck at home and only allowed herself to go out for essential errands. Seeing how many Filipinos longed to be outdoors in refreshing, green spots during this time, Jasmine has one huge plight, and keeps her fingers crossed that the right persons hear it: she hopes that Metro Manila will eventually transform into a greener city with more parks, more organic places! Now that people have finally embraced the beauty of being outdoors and grown a renewed appreciation for nature, she's definitely praying for city landscapes to change in the future to accommodate this.

Don't be surprised about Jasmine's quarantine bod—not only did she have time to exercise because of being locked up indoors, but her new film required her to have a toned physique—and show more skin. "It was a very big step in terms of the maturity of the films I've been used to doing in the romantic genre... Here kasi I don't have a cover up, and there's a suggestive nude scene," she explains. "And it was a vanity thing!" she jokes with a smile. She also definitely wanted to be prepared for accepting more work and getting back into the grind; she looked into healthy eating, bought a bunch of vitamins, and really got into the rhythm of working out a couple of months ago.

In case you didn't know, Jasmine has also branched out into music. She manages a record label, Funky Records, and several artists under it, too. She's then tried to learn as much about unfamiliar territory as much as possible, something she needed to double time on as COVID-19 has changed the entertainment industry as a whole. "Ngayon pa ako papasok," she says as she pokes fun at herself. Budgeting, negotiating, learning the ins and outs of the business, knowing when and how to fight for her artists—all of these things are new skills that Jasmine had to pick up to get her label off the ground. (Take the time to listen to Bea Lorenzo!)

Hindsight is 2020. That's what Jasmine feels about not taking advantage of her days off, long weekends, and holidays in the past when she could have traveled more, because that's definitely one of the things she mourns over the most - the freedom to travel, even locally. She thinks of all the new beaches, new cultures, and new provinces that she could have visited and discovered when the world was safe enough to move around in. Now, even though she technically can travel again, even internationally, back of mind, she'll be worrying about her safety, the possibility of getting stuck in a far away place, and the hassles of quarantine—so, no. Maybe travel has to wait after all.

A typical day for Jasmine starts at 5a.m. and being an early riser, she takes her time starting her day but what she does first is to practice mindful breathing. Morning skincare comes next (or breakfast first, if she's in the mood for it!). No matter what she does or whatever sequence of activities she follows, the only thing that matters to her is not being in a hurry. To her, that's how she's able to be fully present in whatever she does and focus. "I try to be intentional so that 'yung self-care ko and 'yung energy na ibinibigay ko sa sarili ko is always good for me and the people around me, especially if the people around me are the people that I love," she explains.

"Uncertainty is the only certainty" is Jasmine's mantra. "Allow that to manifest," she says, even though human nature more often than not dictates that we prefer sureness. Let it shift, let things change because they're all steps to modeling your life into the shape it's meant to take. Those who know Jasmine, personally, will know that this has been a really big, and beautiful, transformation for the young actress who formerly obsessed over details and was a nitpicky planner. It's not only that this is how 2020 has changed her; she's also now more sure of the kind of person she is and wants to be, and these are some of the new values and philosophies that a new Jasmine wants to have.

The world is changing (has changed) and so is Jasmine. It was an unfortunate situation to her, at first—the whole business of having to put everything on hold and change gears—but as she saw how it benefitted her mind, her spirit, and even her body, she embraced the transformation. There's even a feeling of relief and a welcome return to who she was (perhaps her true self) before life as an artista rolled around. Now that Instagram, fame, or "relevance" aren't half as important as being a kind person to one's self and to others, compassionate, and accepting, Jasmine has learned to love the change in her perspective, and the world's, too.

Jasmine now emphasizes living a life that's more intentional and heartfelt—not in a sappy way, but in terms of giving, and finding, meaning in everything she does, big or small. That energy is precious, and it's contagious, and it's oh so relevant and valuable these days. "Let's be passionate. Let's put our one hundred percent in it, even if it's just something you're doing to get by for the meantime. Give it your all because it's not about what you're doing, but how you're doing it," she advises.

Thinking about what she wants to get out of the next year, Jasmine says that she wants her self-confidence to lead the way and inspire other people to do the same. And she doesn't mean just the kind of self-confidence she has when she's in front of a camera; she also means the confidence to do what she wants in life, to be unapologetic about who you really are, to back up the decisions you make for yourself. "I want to be able to give myself that type of empowerment... And I want everyone to feel that in 2021," she ends.