Allhallowtide: Honoring Life, Death, and Connection with our Neighbors

This season invites us to slow down and notice the deeper cycles of life. Allhallowtide—the three-day festival that includes Halloween, All Saints’ Day, and All Souls’ Day—has long been a time to remember those who came before us, to honor the lives of saints and ancestors, and to recognize our place in the flow of creation.

At Imagine Cincinnati, we’ve found that when families gather to learn, move, and reflect together, something powerful happens: we connect not only with ourselves but also with our neighbors, with the history of the land where we stand, and with the rhythms of the natural world around us.

Some of the oldest graves, where trees have grown around them.

Last October, we held a yoga practice in our neighborhood graveyard—the Pleasant Ridge Presbyterian Church’s graveyard, which has been there since the early 19th century. In fact, it’s the very place from which our neighborhood gets its name. Before we gathered, we researched the site and discovered that revolutionary war veterans were buried there. We learned about tragic moments in our neighborhood’s past and the vital role the church played in supporting families through their grief.

When we arrived, we noticed Halloween decorations placed lovingly on newer gravestones. After our practice concluded, a neighbor and his wife stopped by to introduce themselves. Those decorated stones, it turned out, marked the graves of their family members—including the child they had lost at a young age. They were so glad to see people gathering in the space that they had blown out the leaves and cleaned up for us earlier that day.

Our neighbor shared a black-and-white photo of his mother, which he gave us permission to share. As he talked, we realized how this place had been woven into his family’s story for generations. His parents had even met on the very land where we stood—once lined with houses before the space became a parking lot. Life, death, love, loss, the evolution of a neighborhood: all of it was present in that one evening practice.

It was more than yoga. It was a reminder of how cemeteries were once active community spaces—places where families picnicked, children played, and stories took root. We glimpsed the ways that connection to land, to memory, and to one another can deepen our sense of belonging.

Knowing the history of the place we live deepens our sense of belonging. It reminds us that neighborhoods are more than houses and streets—they are living stories shaped by generations before us. This is also the value of getting to know our neighbors. In a time when so much around us encourages fear of the other, when civil conversation feels harder to come by, and when the individual is too often elevated above the community, practices like these ground us differently. They remind us that we are part of something larger than ourselves.

This year, as we mark Allhallowtide together with families, we’ll again turn to practices that invite both play and reflection: Halloween yoga and milkweed planting, learning about Día de los Muertos and the monarch butterflies of Mexico, and gathering once more in the graveyard for an evening practice. But beyond the events themselves, our hope is that families experience what we experienced last year: the gift of seeing ourselves as part of something bigger—a web of neighbors, histories, and generations that shape who we are and who we are becoming.

Gathering in spaces like a graveyard, planting seeds together, or learning the stories of other traditions—these small acts carry hope. They help us imagine neighborhoods where connection runs deeper than division, and where remembering the past can open us to a more just and generous future.

Thursday, October 30

Playgroup: Halloween Yoga & Milkweed Planting
9:30–10:30 AM
We’ll kick off Allhallowtide with a special playgroup that blends movement, nature, and seasonal fun. Kids and caregivers can stretch and play through Halloween-themed yoga, then help plant milkweed—the essential host plant for monarch butterflies.

Friday, October 31

Playgroup: Día de los Muertos & the Monarchs of Mexico
9:30–10:30 AM
On Halloween morning, our playgroup turns toward the rich traditions of Día de los Muertos. Families will learn about the Mexican celebration of life, remembrance, and the migration of monarch butterflies—a symbol of the returning souls of ancestors.

Saturday, November 1

All Saints / Allhallowtide: Yoga in the Graveyard
6:15–7:30 PM
We close the weekend with a reflective evening gathering. Surrounded by the quiet of the graveyard, we’ll move through a yoga practice that honors the connections between life, death, and renewal. It’s a chance to pause, breathe, and experience the season’s deeper spiritual roots.