Anastasia was an aspiring psychologist, young and full of energy coming out of high school.
She dreamed of going to a well-known university like Harvard or Yale. She had the academic performance to earn herself an admission to any school of her choosing, but she simply could not afford it. Distraught and feeling downtrodden, she didn't know what she was going to do. Luckily, she earned tuition waivers and plenty of scholarship money at the best university in her state, so she settled for that school.
She went on to do amazing things, not letting anyone or anything get in her way. She caught the eyes of many of the psychology professors, wrote articles that got published in psychology journals, and quickly rose to the top of her department's graduating class.
Her record and reputation were impeccable. She took advantage of her being at a seemingly unimpressive university and molded it into an amazing experience, outcome, and story. She went on to complete the same university's doctorate program for psychology after she had earned her bachelor's degree there. By this time, she had made a name for herself across her state at a relatively young age. Anastasia continued to write amazing articles and be known for her thought-provoking and impactful papers to the point where people knew she would be going places much greater than her home state. Over time, Anastasia's success did not dwindle. She soared higher and higher with each year.
Now as a seasoned clinical psychologist, Anastasia wanted to do even more in the field of psychology. She began to write books, and hit immediate success thereafter. She eventually began a world tour for her best-selling book, "The Unique Life of a Child Psychologist: A Sheep in Wolf's Clothing." Her engaging take on this field in psychology aroused readers across the globe, psychologists and those unfamiliar with psychology alike. Selling upwards of a million copies over the span of a few years, Anastasia had made it. She had made a name for herself, made a fortune in sales of her various works, and had not a single worry in life. She had made the best of an otherwise sub-par environment in which she started her career.
Near the end of her career, Anastasia heard disheartening news; her alma mater was having to shut its psychology department down. Not having visited in years, Anastasia did not know that the university she owed her incredible success to was in distress. Fortunate for having attended that university, she couldn't imagine where she would have been if she had gone to Harvard or Yale, accepted loads of loans, and not had the same opportunities to become a prosperous psychologist. Because of this, she could not let her dear university's psychology department be shut down. She did everything in her power to stop it from collapsing. She held books signings there, organized conferences, taught courses, and even wrote more books geared towards the betterment of that psychology department.
Ultimately, she ended up donating over ten million dollars in resources to that psychology department and brought it back to life. Her alma mater's psychology department was eternally indebted to her. Without that department, there would be no Anastasia; without Anastasia, that psychology department would be no more.
I'm not sure if everyone caught all the subtle tie-ins, but from the get-go, I wanted to include deeper meanings in this story. The major one I chose was the name Anastasia, which means "resurrection." It's apparent why that name would be the go-to name for writing a story about saving grace, deliverance, etc.
I based my story off the tale of Ailbe, the child that was abandoned by his parents in the woods. The helpless Ailbe, young and unsure of what to do, was graciously taken in and raised by a wolf mother that was roaming by. She raised Ailbe as one of her own cubs. Ailbe became a member of that wolf family. Many years later, Ailbe was found by a nearby kingdom's prince who was out in the woods. Against his will, Ailbe was taken to the prince's castle to be raised by him and his princess. Despite the initial aversion, Ailbe adapted and grew. Now as a man living amongst royalty, Ailbe thrived with regard to fortune, position, and knowledge. Many years down the line, his former wolf family came before him as they were threatened by hunters. Ailbe came to their rescue and ensured their safety and well-being from that point on.
I related the tale of Ailbe to Anastasia in that they both were saviors in their own ways. They began with lowly beginnings, were taken in by gracious parties around them, and did not falter when given the chance to return the life-saving gesture. Sure, Anastasia's gesture was not life and death, but it was a close parallel with respect to today's day and age.