Imagine having the beginning and end of a fascinating story, but missing half the pages.
That's the dilemma facing Nadine Hillock, the granddaughter of a Gallipoli veteran, who is reading and transcribing a series of her late grandfather's diaries about his war service.
Nearly half his 20 diaries are missing.
The contents of Robert John Gibson's diaries are even more poignant for Nadine as, on Anzac Day, she will be in Turkey attending the service marking the centenary of Anzac landings on the Gallipoli Peninsula.
Nadine (45) was born and raised in the Maniototo, and has lived in Adelaide for the past eight years with husband Richard, also a New Zealander, and their three children.
Her grandfather, known as Bobby, grew up in Duntroon and became a farmer at Patearoa after the war.
The family still has strong links to the Maniototo. Mr Gibson's son John and grandson Rex continue to farm at Patearoa.
Bobby Gibson served in the field ambulance division during World War 1 and wrote vivid accounts of his service.
Mrs Hillock has started transcribing the entries and scanning the originals.
Mr Gibson sent the diaries home to his sister Euphemia Williams in Glenavy during the war but mystery surrounds nine of the 20 diaries written during his service from 1915-17.
''Our family have some of his diaries but we are not sure if the others were lost in the post or if they arrived in New Zealand and were subsequently shared with friends or relatives to read,'' she said.
Each diary had his name and the date inside and they were numbered from 1-20.
The family has diaries 1-5 and 15-20 in the series but diaries 6-14, all written in 1916, are missing.
The last diary starts on July 9, 1917.
''There's some fascinating stuff in the diaries but there are a whole lot of the series missing, in the middle, which is a shame and we're really keen to find those,'' Mrs Hillock said.
Her father has been looking after the diaries since her grandfather died in 1977.
''In July last year, when I was home for a visit, my dad asked me if I wanted to take them back to Adelaide with me and to try and transcribe them. He knew that I had applied for the ballot to go to Gallipoli in 2015.
''I was very honoured that he trusted me to look after the diaries and of course I jumped at the chance to transcribe them so that other family members could also read them, and maybe even some interested members of the public.''
They were a valuable resource as one of the very few accounts given by medical staff in World War 1.
Mrs Hillock was among about 10,000 New Zealanders who entered the ballot to attend the centennial
Anzac Day service at Gallipoli this year. She was unsuccessful in the first ballot for 2000 places and joined the waiting list.
''I thought I'd missed out completely and then quite recently, they emailed to say I was in, after all, which was amazing. I'm really excited about going and my grandpa's link with the place will make it more special.''
Travel and accommodation costs are met by the successful applicants and they receive a free pass to the commemoration service on Anzac Day. She will wear her grandfather's war medals to the service.
Mrs Hillock is a pharmacist and the executive officer of the South Australian Medicine Evaluation Panel.
''Having a pharmacy background, that adds to the diaries for me, too. It's fascinating to hear how they managed in pre-antibiotics days.''
The diary entries contain funny snippets, such as a piece about the doctor on board suffering from seasickness as the boat containing the field ambulance staff men set sail from New Zealand to the front.
Ironically, Mr Gibson had tried to enlist but was deemed ''unfit'' for active service as he was too short - ''he was just under the 5ft 2 height you had to be'', his son, John Gibson, said.
More medical personnel and field ambulance staff were recruited for the Gallipoli campaign and despite having no medical knowledge, Mr Gibson was drafted into the field ambulance service.
His war service began on a ship heading out of Wellington, the Aparima, with 30 ambulance crew.
''A decent crowd of fellows''.
They received medical lectures from the doctors on board and later helped care for wounded servicemen in the base hospitals.
John Gibson said his father was ''more or less attached to the mounted regiment'' and served at Gallipoli, Egypt and in Palestine.
''He talked about wagons with big red crosses on the side to take wounded back to Cairo and about carts being pulled by camels."
His family had read the war diaries but his father rarely talked about his experiences.
''The diaries contain a very good description of my dad's war. All his life, he cared a lot about others, and the diaries just confirm that,'' Mr Gibson said.
• Anyone who can shed any light on the missing diaries is asked to contact Lynda van Kempen at lynda.van.kempen@odt.co.nz
Robert John (Bobby) Gibson
• A Section
• Expeditionary Force
• Field Ambulance division
• Service No: 311026
• Born 1892, died 1977
• One of eight siblings (four sisters, three brothers)
• Family shifted to Duntroon when he was 4.
• Worked as a bank officer and returned to that role in Christchurch after the war.
• Moved to Patearoa about 1921 to help his brother William, who had drawn a farm block in the Puketoi Soldier Settlement.
• Bought the farm next door to his brother's 18 months later.
• Married Robina Melville Kirk and the couple had three children - two daughters and a son.
• Mrs Gibson died in 1971.
