I agree with you completely on the smile. It is really very simple but not always easy to do. In many cases without thinking our parents or friends will tell us that we are not perfect and need to change. In fact we are perfect most of the time. Just smile. Really if they criticise or blame they are talking about themselves and not about us. Listen to your own inner voice and do the things which give you happiness. In my case my mother gave me up when I was 5 years old: I was brought up by my grand parents and an aunt. I was lucky because they did a very good job and let me be a very independent person