It took me 66 loops in the stormwater drain trail over the same number of days to complete the 774 km of El Camino online. A significantly slower pace when compared to the 905 km in 42 days of my walk to Sydney. However, this time around I didn’t have to put my life on hold and I squeezed the pilgrimage in alongside my daily life and unescapable household chores.

FormalPara Bookmark of Thoughts

A team of researchers [74] gave a list of words to scuba divers to memorise while they were on land and when they were under water. The divers recalled more words when quizzed in the same environment they memorised the words in. That is, their memory improved when tested at the learning environment compared to a different one – this is known as the reinstatement effect. I have mentioned this effect in workplace discussions, suggesting we design environments that provide cues to help workers remember things [75] – particularly relevant for gig-workers who change environments frequently.

Environmental context-dependent memory is a fascinating field of research with its fair share of nuances and intricacies that are best left to proper studies [76] on the topic. But, reading, writing, or even talking about it, is not nearly as fun as experiencing it. And experienced it I did during my 66 loops.

The best way I can explain it, is when you surprise yourself about recalling the words of a song you thought you would not remember, but when the time comes, the words come out. Scholars in the subject will be quick to point out the flaws of my analogy, but as I walked over and over my loop, I would surprise myself by remembering, on cue, what I was thinking about in that same spot a few laps ago; without even trying.

My loop, that concreted stormwater drain, now serves as a trusty bookmark of thoughts.

No mental gymnastics could convince me that I had done the Camino de Santiago. Neither the three certificates or the postcards (or perhaps because I got postcards) could persuade me otherwise. Yet, as clear as I am about that, I am also certain that I didn’t just walk, I really did do a pilgrimage.

This pilgrimage changed my mind about online pilgrimages, and I now feel more at ease with my iguana too – it just needs to be given a fair go.

The intangibility of this pilgrimage created signposts which leaned heavily towards the purpose, meaning and essence of work and the workplace. These might seem to be the domain of the many management and HR consultants, but these signposts should concern designers too. Why? Because “one who knows the why, can bear almost any how”. This might sound a bit too existentialist and better left for Viktor Frankl’s Man’s Search of Meaning [77] than a book on workplace design, but if slightly adjusted, its wisdom becomes very relevant: one who doesn’t know the why, might not bear any how. When fleshed out a bit more this becomes our last and a very relevant signpost:

figure a

Having learnt not to expect much out of the last step of a pilgrimage, I don’t even know where I took it. What I did notice was that on the last email from the organisers, along with my certificates, there was a question: “Ready to take on your next challenge?” Beneath was a link to other virtual challenges they offered. I wasn’t ready, but the challenge came anyway – and not from their link.