Why would Toyota Sienna gear shift cable came off and seemed to lose power

What is your question?

AS above. The Toyota Sienna was on the side of the road. My daughter could not understand why the van seemed to be in neutral, even though it was in park. And also, she had some guy trying to help the van start with jumper cables. I showed up and told him, its not the battery, but thank you. I knew it had something to do with the gear shift cable. I was able to get the cable back onto the gear stick assembly and in the right gear. When I did, the power seemed to be back on in the van. Before, it was as if the battery was totally disconnected. I drove it home with no problem. I went under to have another look and temporarily use a zip tie until the cable bushing (which was why the cable came off, the bushing seemed to have evaporated) could arrive. And when I messed with the cable, the electrical power totally disappeared, again as if the battery were totally disconnected. I put it all together and disconnected the battery and reconnected it. Power returned. WHAT IS GOING ON?

What makes this problem better or worse?

I really don’t know

How long has your 2008 Toyota Sienna had this problem?

A couple days