My last job was Monday, March 16. I’m a pretty active person, so to lose that much freedom to social distancing obviously takes a toll. But I’m grateful I have hope.

I wake up every day and write myself a list. I think, To stay active, at least mentally, I’m going to meditate, work out and paint. Listening to music and doing chores around the house have also helped me cope. There are endless ways to spend the time other than scrolling through your phone or doing absolutely nothing.

I’m blessed that I’m in Los Angeles with my roommates, who are basically my family. (We just made an outrageous TikTok.) For people who are by themselves, I definitely recommend a daily to-do list, even if it’s short, like stretch, take a bath—or learn pick-up lines in Spanish! You can do that using the video I just helped produce and write for Playboy.

When Playboy approached me with the idea I was inspired! I said, “Let’s shoot it. Let’s put this thing together.” I’ve modeled since I was 14, but I’m also super interested in being behind the camera. Even the smallest projects make my heart happy. And focusing on language for this one made a lot of sense for me.

As a bilingual person I know connections happen between people who speak different languages; it doesn’t have to be a barrier. Human interaction transcends things like religion, location in the world and the way we communicate. It’s like music: It could be any language, and you still feel the emotion. The feeling will always be there. That’s important, at this time especially.

It’s not just a few people in our country who are facing the pandemic. We’re all going through this together. Community has been on my mind a lot, and as I make my lists I always try to think of ways I can use my voice to help. Right now I’m promoting a clothing line by a brand called Illegal Drip that benefits Border Kindness, an organization helping migrants stuck at the border. It really hit me hard that there are people searching for a better life who already didn’t have what they needed, especially medical resources. And they’re not going to receive any help from the government because they’re undocumented. We all see in the news how the system wasn’t constructed in a way that helps these people. I just can’t imagine going through that while worrying about getting sick.

I’m so grateful for what I have and that even though we have to stay at home I can use my voice to connect and bring awareness where it’s needed. It was really a pleasure to work with Illegal Drip and to see how one brand can take art and a message and put it out in the world. I want to use my voice the same way.

As told to Michele Sleighel.