Colin Gibson, Emeritus Professor of English at Otago University and one of New Zealand’s greatest hymn-writers, died on Saturday 10 December, aged 89. At a memorial service, members of Colin’s family shared an extract from an essay he wrote. The words are inspiring and explain the enormously talented, kind-hearted, generous and tireless composer and writer’s approach to life.

Ø To be human is to be a creator, one who makes something out of nothing or one who makes something radically new.

Ø To be human is to be a creature delighting in play.

Ø To be human is to belong to a race of creatures who consciously seek to give expression to their sense of selfhood.

Ø To be human is to be a compulsive storyteller.

Ø To be human is to be in a permanent condition of discontent, to be committed to a restless reinvention.

Ø To be human is to wish to set our print in the sand.

Ø To be human is to be curious about our own personality.

Ø Finally, to be human is to be committed to the exploration of those great philosophical moral and ethical questions which we ourselves and no other creatures concern ourselves with.