Christmas 1961 was one of the most tragic days of my life.

I crept out of bed at 4am to ensure that Santa had been and discovered a new bike, the Elvis LP, GI Blues and a host of other goodies. Among them was the complete set of Anne of Green Gables books.

I took them back to bed and by the time the rest of the family was up, I greeted them with red, tear-swollen eyes and a heart that had been broken by the tragedy of that young orphan’s life.

How could I enjoy Christmas while she suffered?

By the way, Christmas 1962 wasn’t much better. My grandmother bought me an Elvis record which included the song Old Shep – about a man who has to shoot his own dog.

Looking back, I can now see I had too much imagination. Anne of Green Gables certainly is meant to be funny. All the tragedy in the little girl’s head is pure over-dramatic imagination.

So why was I lying crying my eyes out at 4am the other day when I was re-reading it?

I am on the fourth book now. Anne is married to her childhood antagonist Gilbert Blythe.

The real tragedy about the books, though, is that they have dated a bit. The stories are still wonderful but the sense of morality and justice that is woven through them seems so different, so naive compared with modern times.

There is very definite rivalry between adherents to the two main political parties of the day and certainly between the Presbyterians and the Methodists. But if the chips are down everyone rallies to help and good always triumphs.

Try reading this book with the news on in the background. It is like night and day, bitter and sweet, good and evil.

Religion: I don’t believe that any of the things being done in the name of religion are religious. But still, people like ISIS are hiding behind Islam to carry out the worst of inhumane atrocities that are as abhorrent to their religion as anyone else’s.

Then there are the fundamental Christians who have completely thrown out the central message of God – that we love one another. They don’t only condemn what they consider the sins but also the individual “sinners” – which is why abortion doctors have been killed, gay people defiled and hate embraced.

Then there are the politicians.

How many of you watched the latest US presidential debate?

It was absolutely horrendous. I fear for a world in which the strongest leader is Donald Trump.

During the presidential election where Obama was elected to office, I didn’t know anything about him and wanted Hillary Clinton to win.

I still want her to win but only because of the alternative.

Not that we need to look to the USA for chaos or trouble. We have plenty of that in our own backyard. The only happy people in Britain today must be the political commentators. They must be getting paid overtime for trying to keep up with what is happening in the world.

I used to belong in Green Gables. I believed that right and wrong were easily defined. In my day it was even easier because the good cowboys wore white hats and the baddies wore black.

In my youth the police only upheld the law and served with honour. Hillsborough would never have been covered up and police would never have been told to use violence during the miners’ strike. And, of course, all those black freedom fighters in South Africa really DID fall downstairs or out of windows in the police stations.

Okay, that last one was a stretch too far, even for my naive imagination, but you know what I mean.

I don’t know if the world has changed or if I have just grown up. Certainly we are more exposed to evil because technology has exposed us to more of everything.

All I know is, the world is a pretty sad and corrupt place at the moment. I’m going back to Green Gables.