Imagine you are 55 years old, you have lived your whole life in a certain way, and one day your child comes to you and says something like "mom, dad, I love you, but you're doing it ALL wrong... Working my 40k/yr job, in 5 years I'm going to save enough money to retire, forever. Isn't this AWESOME!?!"
...
Sounds pretty absurd, doesn't it? :)
When I first read ERE years ago, I scoffed at it, closed the page, and didn't go back for over 2 years! To my mind then, it's ideas were so absurd, I couldn't imagine it made sense. And then I found it again accidentally, after I had changed enough, and realized that it was possible... I wonder if you did similar.
Your parents are just the same, except they are also scared for your safety. You've dropped a bomb on them. You have literally told them that everything they know about money, retirement, savings, and work, might be wrong. If you were warren buffett they might listen respectfully (probably not, but possibly), but you're just a punk-kid with no life experience.
And it's not just about your age... there's also a sense of innate comparison here that everyone has. "How come she gets to live comfortably, while I have to scrimp to pay the bills on my credit card?!?" "How come my neice gets to retire, while I've worked for 40 years and can't afford to do it?!?" "What if everyone did this, then no work would get done and society would collapse." "What if it *is* true, and I've wasted my whole life... oh god!". Every time you tell your plans to someone, these sorts of reactions will come up. It's natural.
The best thing that I can recommend in this situation is smile, tell them you love them, and thank them for their input. Share your plans if you want (and there are many good reasons to), but don't do it constantly. And then save your money, invest it, and 5-10 years from now listen respectfully when they give you an earful after you announce your retirement. (it's coming, but don't worry, you can handle it). After plenty of discussions that go something like "mom, dad, I love you, this is what I'm doing, stop talking about it or I'm not coming over for thanksgiving"... they will finally accept that you know what you're doing, and while they still probably won't understand, they will move on...
Sometimes they will actually be impressed enough to listen, and you can help them grow too. But don't worry if they don't... This is life. You've got a lot more like it coming. Good thing you're getting prepared financially. You'll do great. :-)
Cheers,
~ DaftShadow