JOHN OLIVA: What if, while we're stealing the angel statue, the neighbors call the cops?

(audience laughs) Is this a misdemeanor?

Can I get arrested for this?

(audience laughs) TRINITY THOMPSON: I can't take it.

I run to the kitchenette.

"Okay, God, I get it.

"You're punishing me.

Just show me what to do to fix this."

MEAGAN FRATIELLO: Then I hear it.

At the top of the tree is a beautiful black crow hanging upside down.

THERESA OKOKON: Tonight's theme is "Beg, Borrow, Steal."

Have you ever done something that was bold, sneaky, or just downright clever?

Maybe you borrowed something without permission.

Maybe you stole the moment.

Maybe you had to beg for grace.

Maybe you just, like, found a workaround that magically did the trick.

Tonight's tellers are sharing stories of resourcefulness, rule-breaking, and making things happen.

♪ ♪ THOMPSON: My name is Trinity Thompson.

I am a screenwriter, filmmaker, and educator from Los Angeles, and I'm originally from Honolulu, Hawaii.

And how did you find your way into personal storytelling?

Because I'm from Hawaii, and I grew up in a family that didn't have a lot of money, we were pretty isolated from the world, and reading books, watching films was my way that I just got introduced to everything else.

And so I've always had a love for storytelling.

And it wasn't until, I think, many years after college, when I was teaching, that I realized I wanted to give myself a chance to tell some of my own stories.

And what was it like for you to, like, find your voice?

I think it's a process that I'm still in.

I, there are times when I come across a story idea or want to share something from my own experience, and I'm scared of it.

And that, to me, is when I know I'm on to something really important, when it doesn't feel easy and I'm kind of worried about how people will react to it and if it's the right thing to say.

But I can't say I've found my voice.

I think I'm constantly finding it.

And it's in those moments where I want to silence my voice that I choose to let it, let it be loudest.

It's my freshman year of college.

I'm on a bus with my classmates on the way to go Halloween costume shopping.

I can't wait.

You see, growing up, I wasn't allowed to celebrate Halloween.

My parents are pastors, and it was the "devil's holiday."

(audience chuckles) So my friends would go trick-or-treating and I would stay at home.

I hated that.

And it wasn't because I didn't get the candy or didn't get to try out costumes.

It was because it made me stand out.

I just hated standing out.

Now that I'm in college, I plan to fit in.

And I know Halloween's going to help me do it.

We're on the bus on the way to the store when we're guessing each other's costumes, and Emmett says to me... (snaps fingers) "Oh, oh, are you gonna be Storm?"

It's the third guess I've gotten at this point.

All three Black characters.

I wanted to be Trinity from "The Matrix."

She's cool and she's strong-- I'm a huge movie buff-- and her name's Trinity.

(laughs) But now I'm realizing, if I don't want to stand out, and I don't, I think I need to be a Black character.

So, "Yes," I tell Emmett, "I'm going to be Storm."

When we get into the costume shop, however, I realize very quickly I'm not going to be Storm.

Her wig?

$30.

(audience murmurs) I have $27 in my bank account.

(audience chuckles) I thought that was a lot of money at the time.

It's not at Stanford.

(audience chuckling) So I have this pleather top and bottom.

I can't afford all of this.

And I'm trying to figure out what to do when the film gods help me.

I cannot be Halle Berry's Storm, but I can be her Catwoman.

I ditch the wig and start heading to the cash register when my friend Nathan stops me.

He's heard about my new costume-- he's very excited.

(gasps) "No mask?

No claws?

No whip?

(scoffs) "Girly, I'm not going to let you cheap out on a Catwoman costume."

(laughs) So eventually, Nathan will come out, and I'll understand why this was so important to him.

But at the moment, I hate him.

(audience laughing) "Thank you so much, Nathan," I say.

And then I rush to the dressing room.

Inside the dressing room, I'm panicked.

Okay, I could, I could just ask my brother to send me some money.

No, it's 6:00 a.m.

in Hawaii.

I could just say, "I don't want to do Halloween.

I changed my mind," and... That will make me stand out, of course.

I could come clean, say I don't have the money, maybe ask to borrow some.

Being poor at Stanford?

I'd rather die.

But then I see the pleather top on the ground in front of me.

I realize if I just took it, I can afford everything else.

I look at the top.

I look at myself in the mirror.

I look at the top again.

Three days later, I'm in my dorm room looking at myself in the mirror.

I'm Catwoman, pleather top and all.

I'm sick to my stomach.

I haven't been able to eat, sleep.

I just know this is going to be the worst night.

I just have to get through it.

But when I go downstairs and I open the dorm lounge doors, the first person I hear is Abby.

"OMG, look at Trinity!"

Everyone turns.

They love my costume-- they're checking out my claws, they're taking turns using my whip... I still don't know where it is to this day.

(audience chuckles) And I think, "Wow.

I think I did it, I belong."

But then Emmett tells Abby that he likes my costume more than any of the other girls' because it's not slutty like theirs.

Bunch of people laugh.

I don't.

"Is that supposed to be a compliment?"

I think.

"Comparing women, slut-shaming us, talking about our bodies and our clothes and..." (sighs) Everyone's eyes are on me again.

I didn't think that, I said it aloud.

And all that work I did to fit in?

(snaps fingers) Gone.

I can't take it-- I run to the kitchenette.

I... "Okay, God, I get it, you're punishing me.

"I'm doing Halloween, I'm, took the top, I... "Just show me what to do to fix this.

I'll do anything if you just..." Right then, I hear someone crying.

I turn-- "Abby?"

"You were so great out there," she says.

"Thank you for standing up for me.

"You know, "he's right, my costume's stupid.

"I didn't even want to be a nurse.

"But they didn't have doctors' costumes in my size.

(audience murmurs) "And I didn't even really, "I don't even want to be a doctor.

"That's just what my family wants me to do.

"I do whatever they want me to do.

I have no idea what I'm doing, I'm lost."

Wow.

She's more confused than I am.

When I feel this way, I just go to God.

Oh, that's my amends.

I guess I'm supposed to tell Abby about God?

"Abby, you are brilliant "and you're talented and you're beautiful.

And anyone doesn't get that..." Right then, she kisses me.

It's warm, it's real, it's wonderful.

It's also terrifying.

I wish this was a moment I could say I understood why I was struggling so much with my faith and I started living in my truth.

But it's not.

Instead, I retreat.

I start leading Bible study, I only date men, I take a job teaching, which everyone kind of expects from me.

I blend in really, really well.

I also get miserable.

And one day, I can't do it anymore.

So I stop.

I come out as bi and my husband supports me.

I step away from the church for a bit just to figure out my relationship with God, and turns out we're okay.

(laughs) (audience chuckles) I start writing.

And it's wonderful and it's real.

It's also terrifying.

Every now and then, I want to retreat again.

But then I think about that girl 17 years ago who hid everything about herself-- her race, her class, her sexuality.

And I remind myself of the lesson I've learned since then.

Standing out is so hard, but it's worth it.

I love who I am today.

And I'm not hiding her anymore.

Thank you.

(cheers and applause) ♪ ♪ OLIVA: My name is John Oliva.

I am a professional engineer.

I live with my wife in rural Michigan, just outside of the capital city of Lansing.

Can you tell me a bit about how engineering became part of your life?

So I grew up in a very automotive-focused household.

My parents owned a auto repair shop and also a car wash.

And so cars were just always part of our life growing up.

I really wanted to be a mechanical engineer so that I could go to design cars.

And so I came to Michigan for grad school, and so my master's degree is actually in automotive engineering.

What about storytelling?

How did that become part of your life?

Again, I think I attribute that to my father.

In his business, it was typical to walk in and find him holding court among a handful of customers or employees or whoever else happened to be around.

And he just had all these outlandish stories from his life and from the business.

So growing up kind of in the shadow of Dad, I just kind of picked that up.

And then when I, you know, moved on with my life and found that I had that storytelling knack, as well, and that's always really appealed to me.

Me, my wife, Lisa, and our 13-year-old daughter Bella are driving down to visit our friends Chris and Marin.

I've known Chris and Marin individually longer than they've known each other.

It's been really great seeing them together for the last couple of years.

Chris recently bought a house.

We're going to see that for the first time this evening.

Chris shows us around.

He mentions that the previous homeowners were an elderly couple.

Nowhere is this more apparent than out in the yard, because scattered about, there is an above average number of creepy concrete lawn statues.

(audience laughs) As we come through the front yard, I point out this three-foot-tall concrete angel.

"Hey, Chris, that's a pretty sweet angel you have there.

I really like that, it's so you."

(audience chuckles) He says, "Yeah, I'm not sure what to do with that thing.

I'm actually hoping somebody comes by and steals it."

(chuckling) Immediately, I shoot a glance over at my daughter.

She and I make eye contact.

Even though we don't exchange any words, we both know what the score is.

(audience laughs) It's a couple of months later.

"Hey, Belle, you and I both have off on Friday.

"I was thinking we could hang out.

You want to do something?"

She says, "Yeah, I think we should go back to Chris's house and steal that angel statue."

(audience laughing) I was, like, "Oh, yeah, that's a good idea.

I forgot about that."

As we're having this exchange, I catch a look at my wife.

She has this look on her face that I'm all too familiar with.

It's simultaneous amusement and disapproval.

(audience laughs) But she doesn't intervene.

She lets us carry on with our hijinks, as she so often does.

Friday morning, Belle and I are back on the road, headed to Chris's house.

I should mention, he doesn't live close.

It's a good hour-and-a-half ride to get there.

But that's okay, because that gives us plenty of time to discuss what our actual plan is.

Because up until this point, the extent of our planning has been, "We're going to steal the angel statue."

(audience chuckles) What if when we get there, what if Chris and Marin are home?

What are we going to say to them?

What if, while we're stealing the angel statue, what if the neighbors say something to us?

What are we going to say to them?

What if the neighbors call the cops?

(audience laughs) Is this a misdemeanor?

Can I get arrested for this?

"Dude, Belle, do you have your cell phone?

If I get arrested, you're gonna have to call Mom."

(audience laughs) All these things are running through our mind as we pull into the neighborhood.

We're on high alert.

I come flying into their driveway, slam the S.U.V.

into park, throw open both doors.

We go running across the front yard.

"Dude, where is it?

It's already gone.

Did somebody beat us to this?"

(audience chuckles) Now, I'll always say that my daughter is funnier than I am and she will always take a joke further than I will.

So in one of those proud father moments, I look at her and she says, "Well, we're in this too far now.

We're gonna have to find something else to steal."

(audience laughs) Oh, my gosh, what are we doing?

We're committing our very first daddy-daughter larceny together.

(audience laughs) We go running around to the back of the house.

Underneath a bush, I see what appears to be another lawn statue peeking out.

I crawl under, pull it out, knocking off the accumulated dirt and weeds, standing it up.

I see it's a pelican statue.

Stands about a foot-and-a-half tall.

Looks like it used to be painted white at one point, but all the white paint is flaking off.

It's pretty heavy, it's got to weigh around 30 pounds.

We eye it up and down.

It's not ideal, but it'll have to do.

We lug it back to our vehicle, set it in the back, and we get out of there.

On the way home, we plot out what comes next.

His name henceforth will be Percy the Pelican.

(audience chuckles) Percy's going to set up a social media platform for himself from which he can taunt Chris and Marin.

(audience laughs) We get home, I create an email address for him.

We take some pictures for his profile picture.

We set up his Facebook profile page.

(audience laughing) Percy's first order of business, he sends friend requests to both Chris and Marin.

(audience laughs) Comes along with a little note of explanation that says, "Hi, I'm Percy Pelican.

"I used to live in your backyard, "but I got tired of being neglected back there.

"I'm off to see the world.

You can follow along with my adventures on my Facebook page."

And he shares a link.

Percy then sends friend requests to many of our other mutual friends.

Within a day, I get a text message from Chris.

"Hey, man, you know about this pelican thing?"

(audience laughs) I said, "Yeah, Percy the Pelican?

He and I are Facebook friends."

(audience laughs) He says, "Real cute."

Then he asks me point-blank, "Are you Percy the Pelican?"

(audience laughs) Oh, man, I expected to be on the suspect list for this.

I didn't think I'd be at the top of that list.

"No, man, I'm not Percy the Pelican.

"I'm a busy guy-- I've got a full-time job, "I have a family, I live pretty far away.

"I'm flattered that you think "I could come up with that sort of thing.

But no, I don't have time to screw around with pelicans."

(audience laughs) He seems content with that answer and he goes away.

In the meantime, Belle and I continue to take Percy out on our little photo shoots.

We'd recently moved to this area, so we're taking him to all these new parks and playgrounds that we haven't been to before, posting his pictures online.

I'm having Bella write the status updates, because I don't want Percy to sound like me.

But that does have the unintended consequence that Percy sounds an awful lot like a 13-year-old girl.

(audience laughs) The friends that Percy has made online, they immediately get in on the action, as well.

All of these gifts start showing up at Chris's house.

Pelican-themed salt and pepper shakers.

(audience laughs) Framed pelican pictures, pelican T-shirts.

Everything just has a return address of "from Percy Pelican."

(audience laughs) It's about a week later.

This time, I get a phone call.

It's Marin.

"Hey, John.

"I know you and Chris have talked about this already, "but he's really freaked out about this pelican thing.

(audience laughs) "He says if he doesn't find out who's behind it, "he's going to call the police.

"So I've got to ask you again, are you Percy the Pelican?"

(audience laughs) I'm, like, "Yeah, relax.

"Yes, Bella and I are Percy's puppet masters.

"But you can tell Chris, "but don't tell the rest of our friends.

"We're having a lot of fun with this.

Let's let the mystery go on for a while."

She agrees, and it continues.

It goes on for months, and then it goes on for years.

(audience laughs) (laughs): By some definitions, it's still going on.

(audience laughs) So, Percy Pelican, if you're out there, I hope you get to see this story.

When this whole thing started, we said we were going to take you on adventures so that you could see the world.

In the end, I think we got a lot more out of this than what you did.

Initially, I was afraid Chris and Marin would be upset about this.

I think, in some strange way, it brought us closer together.

And Belle, Belle's all grown up now.

She's moved off, she's attending college.

She and I don't get to go on nearly as many adventures as what we once used to.

But looking back, Percy Pelican still stands out as one of the greatest shenanigans we ever pulled off.

And I know I love telling the story about Percy, but it is so awesome to see that my daughter Bella loves telling the story of Percy Pelican, as well.

Thanks, man.

(cheers and applause) ♪ ♪ FRATIELLO: My name is Meagan Fratiello.

I grew up in Pennsylvania, I now live in Gloucester, Massachusetts, and I have been a creative in a myriad of ways, as an actor, as a writer, singer, editor-- all the things.

(chuckles) How did acting first become part of your life?

FRATIELLO: My father is a musician.

He was an opera singer and a professor.

So I grew up in the arts.

I think when you're born with a high level of sensitivity, there needs to be a place to put that.

And the arts end up being a lovely place to let that have a role, because you can take the things that you see in the world and the way in which you experience the world and create with that.

OKOKON: While you've been involved in all types of performance arts, what is unique about storytelling as a performance art?

It's been a fascinating journey to come from the place of feeling the protection of a script and a stage or a set.

It is entirely different to step out in front of people as yourself.

It's scary.

It's October 20.

5:00 a.m.

I'm in bed, staring at the ceiling, begging the universe to give me a sign I'm going to be okay.

When I was 19, my mother, Joan, died of cancer.

She was 46.

I'm 46.

They just found a lump.

I'll be back at the hospital for more testing later this morning.

I am really, really scared.

(inhales) The bed shakes as my old dog, Donovan, stirs.

(imitates bark) I hear from the bottom of the bed.

A reminder from him that I may be pondering my own mortality, but he needs to pee.

(audience laughs) Fair.

So I roll out of bed.

I realize I'm still wearing Christmas pajamas with dogs, Santa hats on them, which is an interesting choice for October.

Either way, I throw on a hoodie, I grab his leash, and I throw this big blue scarf around my neck that I almost never wear, and together, he and I head out into the morning to do some business and hopefully look for some signs.

I live in Gloucester, Massachusetts, home to rocky beaches, fishing boats, lobsters.

We walk every day in the same park where giant trees line the ocean.

On this day, the air is crisp, it has a bite.

I hear wind, waves, birds, all the things that bring me joy, but so far, no signs.

Then I hear it.

It's strange.

Ominous.

I don't know where it's coming from.

I don't even know if it's real.

It starts and stops in fits.

I can't tell what it is-- am I imagining it?

Is this my sign and I don't know?

We keep walking, and we pass under one of those giant trees.

And suddenly I hear it right over my head.

I am startled-- I look up.

At the top of the tree is a beautiful black crow hanging upside down.

His feet are bound with string.

He's hanging upside down-- he's trapped.

He's trying to fly away.

On any day, this would be devastating.

On this day, when I've specifically asked the universe to give me something to hold on to... (stammers): Universe, I asked for a sign, is this that?

Because I think I've read that crows are omens of death, right?

I think that's true.

And one's dying in front of me.

So that's what you're saying, right?

You're saying that's what's going to happen to me.

Oh, my God-- flap, flap, flap.

I look up.

This time, the crow and I meet eyes.

Well, now we're in it together.

I don't know why exactly, but I know that we are.

And I think of it from the crow's perspective.

He's probably afraid of dying, too.

He, maybe he asked for a sign-- he got me!

(audience laughs) I don't know how to rescue birds!

I flunked out of Girl Scouts.

I don't like to go camping, like, at all.

I don't know how to tie knots.

I've had my first s'more when I was, like, 37?

Which seems relevant right now for some strange reason.

(audience chuckles) I think to myself, "He's afraid of dying, too.

"We both are, but right now, only one of us actually is.

And maybe I can change that."

"Hi, friend!

"Um, my name is Meagan-- I'm gonna save you, okay?

Hang in there!"

Hang in there?

(audience laughs) Get on with it, right, right, right.

Uh, how do I get to the branch?

There's a big trash can nearby-- empty, thankfully.

So I pull it over to the tree, I flip it over, I climb on top.

Ah!

I'm still too short.

How do I get to the branch?

The scarf-- the scarf I never wear.

Today, it can be a lasso.

I take it off, I throw it over the branch, I pull.

Now the crow and I are face to face.

"Hi, friend.

Me again!

(audience chuckles) "Um, I'm Meagan, I met you earlier.

(murmurs) Right, okay, uh, let's just do this."

I break the branch with my hand, I lay him in the scarf.

I climb down and I lay him on the ground.

And now I take the top of the scarf, and I just gently drape it over his face really loose, so he can still breathe and everything, but hopefully to keep him calm while I work.

I go to his feet, his legs.

The string is bound way too tightly for me to pull it off.

I can't, I'm gonna have to break it, but I didn't bring scissors!

What do I do?

There's a rock nearby, it has a sharp edge, let's try that.

I use it.

I start to go at the string, and all of a sudden, snap.

It's off.

(gasps) Oh, my gosh!

Oh, my gosh!

This is happening!

(sniffs) I begin to pull it away from his legs.

And as I do, I look to see if there's any injuries.

Any blood, any bruising-- nothing!

He looks so good, so good!

And then I realize he's not moving!

(softly): At all.

And I don't know if that's because he's just being extraordinarily cooperative... (audience chuckles) ...or he's already gone.

And I failed.

(breath trembles) I pull back the scarf.

His gaze is fixed.

He's not moving.

"Come on, friend.

Breathe!"

And in one miraculous moment, he does.

He shakes his wings, he, he curls his little crow toes.

(audience laughs) "Oh, my God, you're alive!

You're alive!

Oh, my God!"

He's still in the scarf.

So I, I just stand... (sniffs) ...as gently as I can and I point him skyward.

"Fly!"

And he does.

He soars out over the ocean.

And I jump up and down, "Oh, my gosh!"

I hug Donovan.

(sniffs) And as we turn to walk home, I'm different.

I'm fearless.

I don't know what is going to happen next.

I can't control that, but right now, I am so alive.

And so is he.

That was ten years ago.

Sometimes a lump is just a lump.

I'm still here, and crows can live up to 15 years, so I hope he is, too.

I asked for a sign I'd be okay.

The universe and my mom, Joan, delivered.

Thank you.

(applause) ♪ ♪