Clive：a question for you

Clive,

Do you think the underlined word "was" is wrongly used in the following diary written by Anne? Do we need to change it into "have been"?

Thursday 15, June, 1944

Dear kitty,

I wonder if it’s because I haven’t been able to be outdoors for so long that I’ve grown so crazy about everything to do with nature. I can well remember that there was a time when a deep blue sky, the song of the birds, moonlight and flowers could never have kept me spellbound. That’s changed since I was here.

…For example, when it was so warm, I stayed awake on purpose until half past eleven one evening in order to have a good look at the moon for once by myself. But as the moon gave far too much light, I didn’t dare open a window. Another time some months ago, I happened to be upstairs one evening when the window was open. I didn’t go downstairs until the window had to be shut. The dark, rainy evening, the wind, the thundering clouds held me entirely in their power; it was the first time in a year and a half that I’d seen the night face to face…

…Sadly…I am only able to look at nature through dirty curtains hanging before very dusty windows. It’s no pleasure looking through these any longer because nature is one thing that really must be experienced.

Yours,

Anne