Real Romance

I read an article about some men who are considered to be very romantic. The article went on to describe some of their elaborate plans to woo the ladies. After I read their stories, it wasn't their romantic gestures that stood out to me but the fact that they were all middle-aged and single, some with several ex-wives.

What's the point of having that 'romance' that might extract a 'WOW! You did all this for me?!" moment when you can't be a good long-term partner and make your 'signficant other' smile during the every day little things.

When I think of people who have been happily married for years, I notice that most of the men are not romantic (in the traditional way) at all!

Take my Dad for instance. He never buys my Mum flowers (unless I remind him to get some for her birthday). He never whisks her away on surprise getaways or showers her with gifts. But he does clean the toilets and make her laugh when she's stressed and is being illogically emotional. He also does the most unnecessary things to keep the compulsive cleaner in her happy or lets her watch a movie even though he wants to watch the news. I can list many more little things that I find a lot healthier for a long-term relationship than a spur of the moment extravagance.

Although David can be traditionally romantic, I think as along as we can keep each other amused and are there to help each other, that's more romance than I could ever want.