protection; or, magic all up in this branch

i.
in the last week at herb pharm, when i was on landscraping and silently furious with boredom, one of our final tasks was to clean up the pieces of the old old oak tree near herbal ed's house that had fallen down during that storm. after picking up sticks for half an hour, i spied the most beautifully shaped, harmonious and pleasing branch. it was heavy and just a little too big for me to use as a walking stick, but i felt like i should keep it anyway...
since the wizard staff didn't fit in the car we tied it to the top with some twine. its gray majesty pointing our way forward, we started on our journey to the southern lands. at the border of oregon and california, the woman at the stopping point asked me, "are you carrying any fruits or plant materials with you?"
"no," i said, hoping she didn't see the boxes full of herbs taking up the entire backseat. "what about this giant stick?"
"it's from oregon," i said, unable to think of a quick enough lie. "but from really close to here."
"like medford?"
"yes."
"alright, have a nice day."
this was our first glimpse of the power of the wizard staff.

ii.
that night we reached redding and found 'whiskeytown national recreation area' in the atlas. both being fans of whiskey, and having just purchased a plastic gallon bottle of ancient age, we settled on this spot for our camping night. almost immediately upon entering the recreation area, we passed the whiskeytown general store (somehow everyone who hears this story so far has exclaimed at this point, "i know exactly where that is!"), an abandoned building right on highway 44, with creepy cages barring off the open doors. we tried to figure out a way to get onto the roof, and failing that, we set up our tent right behind the building. the moon was nearly full and there was mist everywhere and it was very cold but cozy.
in the middle of the night i was awoken by the insistent sound of my cell phone going off in the car. lying there trying to make myself get up and go turn it off, i suddenly heard the sound of boots approaching on the gravel from very close. and then a voice -
"hey you in the tent!"
i woke up tyler real quick. i wasn't sure if we should maybe just ignore the voice. but tyler said "yeah?"
"you know where there might be some water around here?" he had a texas accent and sounded maybe middle aged.
i guess at first we were kinda relieved that it wasn't the cops at least...
"no, sorry."
"you know where i can find a water bib or something around?"
"sorry, i wouldn't know."
"you got any water in there?"
"no, sorry." this wasn't true, and we talked about it afterward, and felt bad that maybe all he wanted was water, but i can't really explain the incredibly creepy feeling this encounter was creating. we couldn't see this person and i had only heard his approach right as he got to the tent. and then it got weirder.
"i'm just walkin around here, i don't wanna get shot or nothin..."
" -- "
"some guy just offered me a hundred bucks to fuck him in the ass."
" -- "
"well, y'all have a good night now." and we heard his boots shuffling around near my side of the tent but not really leaving.
all the mist and the cold and the invisible person with his strange confession contributed to an atmosphere of trepidation in our tent. we sat for a while silently, feeling scared and cold not knowing if he had left or if he was waiting outside or what his motives were. in retrospect he probably was just a cold and thirsty person hitchhiking on the highway at night but nonetheless it was pretty scary.. after about half an hour we packed up really quiet and peeked outside the tent and, seeing nobody, drove away. it was maybe three in the morning.
tyler thought maybe it was a ghost forever trapped outside the general store, looking for water. i think it was a real human. well, whatever it was, the wizard staff was pointing at our tent the whole time, and i think it kept us from harm.
i hope he found something to drink. still feeling a little bad and weird about this.

iii.
once the wizard staff prevented me from locking the keys in the car.

iv.
in san francisco, we were walking to the grocery store to get some food to make breakfast for our friends, and we passed the hill where the car was parked. immediately a car came down the hill at top speed and swerved directly into the drivers side door of the car right behind ours. a huge accident! luckily no one was inside the parked car. the wizard staff calmly and silently abided.

v.
in l.a. the wizard staff assisted us in immediately finding someone to jumpstart the car when it died.
and i swear it protected me from several freeway accidents on highway 1.

vi.
though these examples sound insignificant, i want to convey that for reals, the wizard staff emanated a subtle yet tangible power, perceptible to anyone who gazed past the surface of its ancient being to the secret magic within.

vii.
we made it back alright and on the way spent one night in the empty intern house, with some snow on the ground outside. it was really beautiful. now the wizard staff rests peacefully against the wall in tyler's room, where ursula tries to climb up it all the time, and sometimes succeeds. i think someday i will find the perfect person to care for it, but until that day i will tend to it gratefully.