The events of the British Season occur in spring and summer. For the Queen, winter is a time to rest and gradually ramp up her work pace. For the royal staff, there is a lot of planning and preparation that needs to be made for the coming busy summer months. There is much to be done and this “slower” time of year provides some space for crucial planning.
Typically, Queen Elizabeth II follows a long-standing tradition of going to her country house, Sandringham, for Christmas, where she remains until mid-February. This long stay at Sandringham involves rest and work. Her Majesty relaxes with guests, rides horses, and spends time with her horse racing hobby by making her plans at the Sandringham Stud, which is located on the Sandringham Estate’s grounds. It isn’t, however, all play and no work. The Queen also conducts individual investitures and bestows local school and church prizes, as well as attending the local Sandringham Women’s Institute meeting which she has been a member of since 1943. (They do seem to have great fun at that WI group – in 2019 Her Majesty lead one of two teams in a Pointless – style quiz conducted by the host of the show, Alexander Armstrong.)
Work doesn’t stop elsewhere either while the Queen is at Sandringham. At Buckingham Palace, work resumes after the holidays with other members of the royal family conducting larger investitures and the Marshall of the Diplomatic Corps conducting farewells to outgoing ambassadors and consular representatives.
The Queen returns to London in mid-February keeping with tradition and allowing her private time to remember her father, King George VI, who died at Sandringham on February 6, 1952. Upon her return, Her Majesty’s schedule quickly gains speed as she begins to conduct welcome audiences for new ambassadors, administrators, and high commissioners.
Her Majesty’s ability to find time to slow down, reflect, and relax during and after the holidays is certainly enviable. I find that for myself, I do not currently have a space in my year that is slower than another in which to conduct similar planning and reflection. I always seem to think I am going to do it during the winter holidays, but find I am suddenly mid-way through January and already feeling behind. But, if the Queen can give herself the time – and she’s one of the busiest people in the world – we can, too.
Certainly, the Queen has staff to assist her, but there is also a fundamental difference in how society functions for different classes. For British elites, winter offers a natural pause of society events due to darkness and weather. When the darkness ends, work picks up. It is important to understand, of course, that work for the royals is much different than work for the rest of us. What looks like fun leisure time making small-talk and watching sports and operas is, for them, the busiest and most visible time of year. Meanwhile for much of the working world, summer is a time for relaxation, with more space for travel and time off, if planned in advance.
For the rest of us, defining our own Season is as simple as defining the busy times of year. Defining busy times of the year also allows for defining more restful and preparatory times of the year. It requires one to decide what is important in the up-coming year and prioritize those events. This allows ample preparation to occur and rest to be had. This is difficult to do with many modern work schedules, for example most children in the United States are out of school during the summer months so while summer could be a relaxing time for a family, most parents still need to work so it isn’t. If we can’t find natural breaks to think and plan, we miss emphasizing the important parts of life and work, so must force them into our schedules. The solution is probably a combination of societal and personal changes to allow time for strategic planning and attending to the little details that cause life to run smoothly. We can start that change by realizing our own need for balance, emphasizing the important events of our lives, and letting the less-important items go.
