Someone sent me this story and I thought I would share. 

First, I love stories of true friendship. Second, it reminds me of my #bloggermailproject in which I sent my friends random gifts. And lastly, I kind of relate to both characters – I am not into running and I am always that one friend who always introduces GCASH to other friends. 

The story goes: 

I am not much of a runner. I have weak knees and easily get tired, and so I have not really mustered the confidence to enter running events. 

But the thing is, I have persistent friends. The kind that would do something behind my back not for anything bad but for my own good. Like last month, when my closest friend at work signed me up for a company-sponsored fun run without my knowledge. 

She ambushed me over lunch. 

“Be ready at 4 a.m. on Sunday. We’re doing the 5K.” 

I was like, “What 5K?” 

“The run,” she said. 

My reaction was a mix of panic and amusement: “You signed me up without telling me!” And then my litany of excuses: “I can’t! My knees, remember? Besides, I don’t have proper running clothes!”

But my friend had it all planned out. She was bent at making me do it—running helps weight loss; weight loss helps me, she pointed out.  

“I already have your race kit and your brand new running outfit. And trust me, I chose well.” 

She apparently had not only signed me up, she took it upon herself to order my running outfit, all in one day. Enlisting for the run was easy, it’s right there at the office, but getting me new workout clothes? 

She ordered it online, she said. The shop was Lotus Activewear, and she paid via GCash. It’s her early birthday gift: “I got you matchy-matchy running top and shorts! You’ll love it!” 

She said she just logged on to Lotus Activewear’s website, browsed for styles and clicked on a pair she thought I’d like. She got me an edgy black mesh top with a matching pair of long shorts that has mesh details and a pocket (convenient for the run; she thought about everything). 

At checkout, she just chose the GCash option for payment, made sure she had enough balance, and voila! Ordered and paid!

I got curious. I’d heard of GCash before but never used it. I didn’t know you could pay online merchants through it.  

My friend, of course, started a monologue—a sales pitch really: “I cannot believe you’re not yet using GCash! It’s easy, reliable, so convenient! You will no longer have to line up at banks or payment centers for your online purchases! You can pay bills, you can transfer money, you can even invest and save.” 

She was breathless. And quite convincing. She had me at not lining up at banks to pay my favorite online sellers—I can just send money to their GCash accounts. Her birthday is coming up next month, so she should know what’s coming.