Inside a paper coffin: how Hongkongers can prepare for the end of life

In the final instalment of a five-part Health Matters wellness series on ageing in Hong Kong, Emily Hung looks at how living funerals, advance directives and family mediation are helping older residents plan for death, as experts warn low death literacy can leave families facing conflict and emotional debt.When Hongkonger Regina Luk Sau-ying was 65, she invited 20 friends to watch her climb into a paper coffin.“I thought I was open-minded about death, but I found myself quite nervous – as if lying there was my last line of defence,” Luk recalled of her living funeral.She refused an electronic candle and chose to lie in complete darkness instead.“It was dark, but I realised the light was actually inside me. I felt like a fetus cradled in my mother’s womb – safe, warm and secure,” she said.“A few minutes later, the lid opened, and I saw my friends surrounding me. It felt like arriving in heaven and being greeted by angels.”Regina Luk planned every detail of her farewell. Photo: Sun Yeung