What is a romantic gesture to you?

Let me tell you a story:

When I was in my early twenties, I had a favorite shirt.  It was long-sleeved, heavy cotton, and a fabulous green. 

(secret: I would much rather wear a long-sleeved t-shirt and jeans than anything else) It was from a local brewery pub that has great food. And while I don’t drink a drop, I loved the pun on the front: “Good for what Ales you.” 

Hysterical!  (secret #2: I have always been a sucker for a good pun. Totally my dad’s fault.)

Well, I had a friend that “borrowed” that shirt. And while I’m sure that friend returned it. . . eventually, it ended up disappearing. (sad face)

So now, jump ahead X amount of years. 

I came home from work, really late at night. Everything was dark and silent. (not so secret: it is never silent here)  I tiptoed through the house as to not wake the kidlings. My husband sleepily whispered hello and said that he had gotten me something. I was puzzled and went out to our living room to look in the plastic bag he told me about. 

In that bag was the very shirt I had lost all those years ago. He had seen it at the thrift store and bought it for me. (Fine. Probably not the same EXACT one, but close enough. It was the same shirt- sheesh.)

I was honestly surprised by the tears that I was immediately blinking away.

Such a romantic gesture. 

It wasn’t extravagant or expensive (5 bucks actually).

It wasn’t something that I had been hinting about wanting for a long time. (although those are nice too. . .)

It was something that my best friend saw, remembered me telling him a LONG time ago that it had been my favorite, and brought me ‘just because.’

That, is romance to me. Knowing what would make the other person happy and surprising them with it.

So, a question for you: How do you define a romantic gesture? Or what is romance to you?