noon
The summer , whose biography like an insignificant life must be written in a few words , was a long one to live through . It happened to be a dry season , which was unfrequent on our coast . Days rolled by without the variation of wind , rain , or hazy weather . The sky was an opaque blue till noon , when solid white clouds rose in the north , and sailed seaward , or barred the sunset , which turned them crimson and black . The mown fields grew yellow under the stare of the brassy sun , and the leaves cracked and curled for the want of moisture . It was dull in the village , no ships were building , none sailed , none arrived . But father was more absorbed than ever , more away from home .