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[Alexandr Korol]

Simply someone you can talk to openly, someone who can listen to you without judgment, support you, and give you the right advice. You see, nowadays, it’s a time when there’s always this game of competition, like who’s better than whom. This often happens within families, between men and women, that is, between husband and wife, and also between children and parents. It’s the same thing, everyone is competing with each other. You want to say something to your husband or wife, and they’ll judge you for it or later use it against you, bring it up again, because there’s this eternal competition. But again, this isn’t the case for everyone, it’s with a certain group of people who have lost their way, I’d call it that. And this happens with parents and children too, and that’s not good either. I’ve heard a whole bunch of stories, and the most interesting thing is that it coincides with my own story. I was lucky, because when I was little, up until I was 18, I always communicated with my grandparents. And you know why I always wanted to tell them everything and ask them anything? Because they never manipulated me, they never judged me, and they never reminded me of things. There was never any “you must study this, that, or the other.” No, they would listen to everything without judging me or teaching me, but that doesn’t mean that parents are bad. No. It’s just that, you see, everyone has a different role. Raising children is hard work. And parents, when they’re raising a child, they need to keep them, let’s say, on a short leash. On one hand, that’s very important, especially in our time of temptation. But grandparents play more of a role where they don’t teach you, don’t discipline you, don’t raise you, but instead, you can talk to them about anything. And I’ve heard many stories from people who said the same thing, that they always loved to talk about everything with their grandmother or grandfather, that there was a stronger connection with them than with their parents. But again, that’s because with parents, you’re more focused on everyday life and responsibility. Parents are responsible for making sure you study, work, and that nothing happens to you. They can’t just say “yes, yes” to everything and calmly listen to you. That’s probably why grandparents listen so well, because they don’t have any control over you. Parents, on the other hand, have a slightly different role, a different task, and that’s how everything fits together. So, a spiritual mentor, as I understand it, is probably someone like Valentina, who met me at the right time so I wouldn’t lose my way.