How many Soviet republics were there?

I live in Ukraine. Here, people weren't persecuted for their faith; they might just be removed from the Komsomol, and that was it, along with general disapproval. My sister was secretly baptized at night. Plus, having dachas, salaries, and cars is good, but the individual's personality has degraded. Now, we live in conditions with roughly the same level of freedom as other countries. Don't you notice how elderly people slow things down? At every turn! (It's frustrating, but my grandmother slows things down terribly.) And it's not just because of old age. Elderly foreigners are completely different. I was a bit surprised when my grandmother, who looked like a goddess, completely crushed me in Mortal Kombat. They are also more lively and quick-witted in communication (although I was a bit slow back then because my English wasn't very good).