My parents inspired me. Not to end up like them. They are not nice people. They are uneducated, racist, overweight, and constantly sit around and complain about their job and in general are critical about every thing.
Without that inspiration to leave and get away from their small town ideas i may have got trapped into a similar existence. It is a battle to resist some of the baggage from my earlier life even today. It is a true statement that you have to eliminate negative people from your life or they will drag you down to their level.
I have not totally eliminated my parents from my life and still attend holidays with them but it is mostly out of duty and i try to just be nice and leave as soon as possible.