Creative Community Care 2025: “Dear Future Me” — Postcard Workshop

By Riya Gupta
Head of Planning, Future Forte | La Trobe Alum | Advocate for reflective spaces and collective healing through creativity

👋Hey, Riya here again, reporting back from the final session of Creative Community Care’s Semester One series: “Dear Future Me: Postcard Creation Workshop”, held on Tuesday, May 6.

If you’ve been following along, you know these workshops have been my weekly break from life. 

As I walked into the familiar space, Stef, our magical art therapist and soul guide, had once again laid out an exciting spread of art materials. Brushes, markers, watercolours, glitter pens, collage magazine, you name it. Stef reminded us of the ground rules: kindness, respect, and freedom to express without judgement. She then explained what we’d be doing: designing a postcard for our future selves. Not bound by time, this could be the “you” of next year, five years from now, or just someday. A letter from the now-you, to the future-you, made with care, hopes and expectations.

On the table were dozens of words like “compassion”, “truth”, “understanding”, “courage”, “success”, “softness” and more. We were asked to pick 5–7 words that resonated with us, things we wanted to embody, focus on, or grow into. Then came the fun part: we were handed blank postcards and invited to design them however we wanted. Art, collage, doodles, handwriting, anything goes. 

For the next 30 minutes, the room was filled with soft music and quiet focus. Each of us thought about what we wanted to say to our future selves, through colour, texture and glue sticks. We were guided by the values we’d picked and the person we hoped to grow into. My hands reached for a magazine and I got stuck on a floral design, as I visualised the kind of space I want to hold for myself in the future. 

Once we were done, we wrote our names and addresses on the envelopes. Stef told us she would mail them back to us in a month, as a small, gentle surprise. We ended with a reflection circle, sharing bits of what we wrote or created, and what we were feeling. Some people talked about chasing dreams, others about slowing down. Some just wanted to be softer with themselves.

Fast forward to when I actually received that postcard in the mail. It was like a version of me from the past to remind me of who I am and what I want. So here’s to art, community, and checking in with the version of yourself that’s still becoming. And thank you Shapes and Sounds for holding this space every week—it meant more than words can ever say.

Until next time,
Riya 💌✨

DISCLAIMER

While these sessions explore mental health, they’re not a substitute for therapy if you're in crisis. The community care sessions are designed for you to take a break and participate in community care that doesn’t feel like work.

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💡Are you interested in joining our next round of Creative Community Care? We're running a one-off session on September 16th 2025 and you can find all the details, and register HERE!