Dying to Meet You

Navigate death and grieving with greater openness, honesty, and preparation thanks to the supportive expertise of Singapore's leading "life celebrant." Growing up with a hardworking undertaker father known as the Coffin King, death was the family business for Angjolie Mei--but that didn't make it any easier to understand, or grief any easier to feel. When her father died unexpectedly, leaving debts but no end of life instructions, Mei found herself taking up his funeral director business, not only to provide for her family, but to help others see death as an opportunity for dignity and celebration. "A funeral," she writes, "is life's graduation ceremony," and we should honor it and plan for it accordingly. Striving to shift cultural perspectives on death and grief as well as to address common questions too often shrouded in mystery and taboo, Mei shares her craft's most important lessons with wit and grace, from the process of embalming to helping children understand a loved one's passing, taking care to include customs from diverse religious and cultural traditions. This candid and thoughtful glimpse behind the morgue's curtain affirms the importance of grieving and ritual, acknowledging that death is part of any life well-lived.

Angjolie Mei is one of a handful of women in Singapore's funeral industry. She is the daughter of the late Ang Yew Seng, a pioneer who was known by some as Singapore's "coffin samaritan" as he often donated coffins and provided funeral services for free to the needy and those without next-of-kin. She is the founder of The Life Celebrant (TLC) 心篇章, a funeral-services company, an entrepreneur, and a certified Funeral Celebrant who published an autobiography titled Dying To Meet You: Confessions Of A Funeral Director in 2017. A woman of many talents, she also hosts seminars, talks, and workshops regularly. In 2021, she launched, "Dying To Meet You," an inspirational podcast series where successful people who on the surface seems to have got it all under control, share their darkest moments when they struggled in silence. ​