Bon Voyage!?

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Often times in science fiction tales we are presented with a hero/heroine who leaves everything behind to take a fantastic journey into the unknown. They could be leaving behind a home, parents, friends, a significant other, pets, a way of life, all for the great adventure of exploring outer space. I pose this question to not only myself but to you as well: Could you leave everything you value in your life to go on a trip in which you may not ever return to Earth? I am not talking about moving to another part of the world because you still have contact with your former life. For example,I moved to another country, had to learn another language, a different culture, and converse with people who have a different perspective about the world than how I was raised. Despite all of that, I still walk on Earth, I can call relatives or friends from my hometown, go for the occasional visit or they visit me, etc.
What I am referring to is taking a risk like our favorite hero would do and leaving this life for the complete unknown, traveling with colleagues we really don't know that well and possibly end our lives in our quest for knowledge about the universe.
I think that is one aspect of science fiction I admire the most, that the main character is so willing to take great risks and face great challenge with tremendous bravery and intelligence for the sake of peaceful exploration in order to acquire more knowledge. In my own travels, I have gained a different kind of knowledge than I did from reading books. For example, I studied the pyramid in the Yucatan Peninsula called Chichen Itza in a classroom in the USA, and many years later much to my delight(mixed with fear of heights) I climbed the steps of that same pyramid! The experience enhanced my book knowledge 1000% so can you imagine traveling throughout the galaxy and how our experience and book knowledge will expand!? Well,I hope one day we humans can stop spending so much time, effort, and money fighting each other and our differences and begin instead using all of that in efforts to explore Earth and beyond.