Why is it called Indian Summer?

10/30/14 -  Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. . . . . first thing that comes to mind when I look at this picture. The old Ford tractor is a piece of junk but it makes a nice picture.  Also, illustrates what lack of attention brings.  The old tractor was in good shape before it had to be moved out of the barn to make room for cars from the Smith estate.  Most of them were sold in an auction around 2005 but the tractor never got put back in storage. It is on my "To Do" list sometimes and my "Round to It" list most of the time.

This photo is an example of the beautiful Fall we experienced in Indiana this year.  There were days when you stepped outside and everything had a golden glow from the fallen leaves and the leaves still in the trees.  On top of that, the temperatures have been uncharacteristically warm.  It also reminds me of advice I received from a friend.  It was given to me when I looked out of a hotel room.  One area was walls, service area stuff and unpleasantness while a beautiful view was over to the left.  When I commented (complained) about the unsightly area below, the advice was - "Well, you can choose to look to the right or you can choose to look at the beautiful scenery to the left."  That pretty much sums up life.


Why is Indian summer called Indian summer? According to the Old Farmers Almanac there are many theories. Some say it comes from the early Algonquian Native Americans, who believed that the condition was caused by a warm wind sent from the court of their southwestern god, Cautantowwit.
The most probable origin of the term, in our view, goes back to the very early settlers in New England. Each year they would welcome the arrival of a cold wintry weather in late October when they could leave their stockades unarmed. But then came a time when it would suddenly turn warm again, and the Native Americans would decide to have one more go at the settlers. "Indian summer," the settlers called it.