In an open interview, TV presenter Marichka Padalko spoke about how her life changed after her son, Mikhail, joined the ranks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. In a conversation with Masha Efrosinina, the star admitted that maternal worries for her son are incomparable to those for her husband, and explained why the young man asked to remove his name from the public sphere.
"Incomparable things": the price of maternal peace of mind
Mikhail Sobolev, Padalko's son, took up the defense of the country at the age of 18. For the TV presenter, this became the heaviest trial, which she describes as "incomprehensible things" that are impossible to fully accept. According to her, the mobilization of a husband and the mobilization of a son are fundamentally different levels of stress.
"There are so many worries and anxieties for my son. These are still incomprehensible things for me," Padalko shared. To preserve her mental health, she consciously blocks any images of her son in the combat zone. The presenter admits that she only sees him in a photo in a military uniform and tries not to let images of him performing combat tasks into her head. "Perhaps I don't even want to have these images in my head, just to preserve my psyche, to wake up and fall asleep," she noted.
From "little baby" to drone pilot
Marichka Padalko found it difficult to realize how quickly her child had grown up. She recalls that just five years ago, Mikhail was playing football, and she was putting gingerbread cookies under his pillow for St. Nicholas Day. Today, on this holiday, she congratulates him on the Day of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
The decision to serve was well-considered. The family agreed that Mikhail would first complete his first year of studies at the Kyiv-Mohyla Academy, after which they would return to the conversation about mobilization. In the end, the guy signed a "18-24" contract for the position of an unmanned aerial vehicle pilot, which implies the performance of combat tasks.
The son tells his mother a little, but according to Padalko, he has "very fantastic results." At the same time, she emphasizes that the war places on the 19-year-old a responsibility that should not rest on his shoulders. "He takes too much responsibility for things for which Russia is definitely responsible, not Mikhail Sobolev," the TV presenter said.
Why the son asked for silence
After Padalko publicly announced her son's decision, social media saw not only words of support but also belittling comments. This became one of the reasons why Mikhail asked his mother not to mention his name in the public space. It is important to him that his comrades do not know about his famous parents and serve with him as an equal, not as the son of a celebrity.
Hope for deadlines
The only support for Marichka is the existence of clear contract terms. She admits that she is very much looking forward to the end of these two years, although she understands that her son may want to extend his service. "I'm afraid to even talk about it, but at least I'm waiting for it," the presenter shared.
Padalko also expressed the opinion that the introduction of certain terms of service could significantly ease the lives of all military personnel and their families, improving the atmosphere in society and making expectations more understandable.
