Psyche logo

The Witness Staff

A real soul passed through this

By Vicki Lawana Trusselli Published about 6 hours ago 4 min read
Trusselli Art

The Witness Staff

A real soul passed through this

The Fantasy That Protects Your Back

“If I had the strength today, I’d be rummaging through my closet and drawers, hunting for scraps of ribbon, old beads, forgotten feathers anything to dress my walking stick the way the old stories describe. But my back has already carried too much, and the film still waits unprocessed. So instead, I imagine the decorated staffs of the ancestors: ember wood, wind caller, moon thread sticks glowing in the dark. Mine will come later. For now, the fantasy is enough.” I will decorate my regular walking sticks soon.

“If my back weren’t screaming from the week of creating films and animation, I’d be dragging out the two huge suitcases and the boxes in my closet, rummaging for scraps of ribbon, beads, feathers anything to dress my walking stick the way the old stories describe. But that’s a Wednesday job, part of my deal with Rosa. Today, I let the fantasy do the lifting: the Amberwood staffs, the wind caller sticks, the moon thread canes glowing in the dark. Mine will come later. For now, the vision is enough.” I have 5 spinal fractures. Easy does it.

The cane is the only truly lived object in the Curator’s carefully staged world. While the room around it is arranged for appearance and approval, the cane carries the weight of real experience, a tool of movement, survival, and truth. Its presence breaks the illusion of perfection, reminding the reader that authenticity exists even in spaces built on performance. The cane becomes a quiet declaration of sovereignty: a marker of the life, history, and reality the Sovereign brings into every room she enters.

MYTHIC STANZA Poetic, symbolic, ceremonial

The cane stood where the portraits watched,

a staff of truth in a room of masks.

Not polished, not posed, not pretending

just the weight of a life that had walked through fire.

In the Curator’s chamber of curated dreams,

the cane whispered the only honest thing:

“A real soul passed through here.”

CHARACTER DESCRIPTION

THE WITNESS STAFF (The Cane)

VICKI THAT'D BE ME

A lived object carried by the Sovereign, the Witness Staff is the embodiment of truth in a house built on illusion. Functional, worn, and unashamed, it represents resilience, history, and the authority of a life fully lived. Wherever it rests, it marks territory not through force, but through presence. In the Curator’s staged rooms, the Witness Staff becomes a symbolic interruption, exposing the difference between authenticity and performance. It is the Sovereign’s companion, her grounding tool, and the silent witness to every moment she refuses to be erased.

The cane is the only truly lived object in the Curator’s carefully staged world. While the room around it is arranged for appearance and approval, the cane carries the weight of real experience, a tool of movement, survival, and truth. Its presence breaks the illusion of perfection, reminding the reader that authenticity exists even in spaces built on performance. The cane becomes a quiet declaration of sovereignty: a marker of the life, history, and reality the Sovereign brings into every room she enters.

The cane stood where the portraits watched,

a staff of truth in a room of masks.

Not polished, not posed, not pretending

just the weight of a life that had walked through fire.

In the Curator’s chamber of curated dreams,

the cane whispered the only honest thing:

“A real soul passed through here.”

THE WITNESS STAFF (The Cane)

A lived object carried by the Sovereign, the Witness Staff is the embodiment of truth in a house built on illusion. Functional, worn, and unashamed, it represents resilience, history, and the authority of a life fully lived. Wherever it rests, it marks territory not through force, but through presence. In the Curator’s staged rooms, the Witness Staff becomes a symbolic interruption, exposing the difference between authenticity and performance. It is the Sovereign’s companion, her grounding tool, and the silent witness to every moment she refuses to be erased.

VICKI THAT'D BE ME

THE WITNESS STAFF — Dark Cinematic Blues (Suno Ready)

VERSE 1

There’s a cane in the corner

where the portraits stare,

a truth stick leaning quiet

in a room built on air.

Everything polished, everything posed,

but that cane don’t lie

it’s walked through storms

the Curator never survived.

REFRAIN (low, echoing)

It stands… like a shadow with a heartbeat.

It stands… like a truth you can’t erase.

VERSE 2

No shine on the handle,

no story rehearsed,

just the weight of a life

that’s known hunger and thirst.

In a chamber of illusions,

where perfection is staged,

the cane breaks the silence

like a soul un-caged.

REFRAIN (dark blues swell)

It stands… where the masks can’t follow.

It stands… where the real breaks through.

BRIDGE (whispered, cinematic)

It don’t bow,

it don’t bend,

it don’t play pretend.

It just says,

A real soul passed through here,

and the room remembers.

FINAL VERSE

So when the Sovereign enters,

the whole house shifts —

the cane marks the ground

like a quiet, holy gift.

Not force, not threat,

just presence in the air

the kind that tells the truth

without ever needing to declare.

OUTRO (slow fade)

It stands…

and the room can’t hide.

It stands…

and the truth survives.

The Fantasy That Protects Your Back

“If I had the strength today, I’d be rummaging through my closet and drawers, hunting for scraps of ribbon, old beads, forgotten feathers anything to dress my walking stick the way the old stories describe. But my back has already carried too much, and the film still waits unprocessed. So instead, I imagine the decorated staffs of the ancestors: ember wood, wind caller, moon thread sticks glowing in the dark. Mine will come later. For now, the fantasy is enough.”

adviceanxietyartcopingdepressiondisorderfamilyhumanitypanic attackspersonality disorderphotographyptsdrecoveryselfcaretherapytraumasupport

About the Creator

Vicki Lawana Trusselli

Welcome to My Portal

I am a storyteller. This is where memory meets mysticism, music, multi-media, video, paranormal, rebellion, art, and life.

I nursing, business, & journalism in college. I worked in the film & music industry in LA, CA.

Reader insights

Be the first to share your insights about this piece.

How does it work?

Add your insights

Comments (1)

Sign in to comment
  • SAMURAI SAM AND WILD DRAGONS 💗💗 about 4 hours ago

    🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺 WOW > WOW > WOW 🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺

Find us on social media

Miscellaneous links

  • Explore
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Support

© 2026 Creatd, Inc. All Rights Reserved.