US president-elect Barack Obama's now bloated rhetoric of 'hope' and 'change' means different things depending on where you sit.
In the US, for example, many people hope that he will be able to bring the change that he has promised, given eight years of a failed presidency and a bitterly divided political arena.
Across East Asia, however, there is a different twist. Many governments hope that he will not represent too much change.
The strategic assumptions guiding America's role in the region have been forged over decades. And while they might be shifting, in part due to China's rise, nobody seems in the mood for dramatic changes, whether it is an old ally, like Japan or South Korea, or the mainland.
Even before his triumph on November 4, regional envoys were peppering his team with one simple question: 'What precisely does Barack Obama mean by change?'
Even before he enters office, some are breathing easier. Many signals suggest Mr Obama will be governing from the centre, all part of his inclusive concepts of a new American patriotism and pro-engagement foreign policies.
