birdseed, bread and baloney

That was the list and in that priority. You really don't need much to be happy.
The 'parrot-whisperer' cut grass and shoveled snow; he had a disability pension. He got by. He liked to sit downtown and pose for pictures, encouraged kids to hold his parrots and parakeets, vibrant red and green feathers contrasting his bald head and snowy beard. He was an icon on the streets. People looked for him, like the first robin in spring or the first local apples at the market, the first snowfall, a reason to pause, to smile. There,
see, that parrot-guy.