noon
I never could fly towards the east at sunset , nor towards the west at sunrise . It hurt ! I used to think , when my time came to die , that I would fly out to sea - on and on till I dropped . '' `` I loved it most at noon , '' Chiquita said , `` when the air was soft . It smelled sweet ; a mixture of earth and sea . I used to drift and float on great seas of heat until I almost slept . That was wonderful ; it was like swimming in a perfumed air or flying in a fragrant sea . ''