President Obama ran one of the most incredible presidential campaigns in the history of our country, featuring a one-word slogan: "Change". He promised that if he were elected to office, he would change the direction for this country’s future, and the sun would rise on a new era of prosperity and success. Sounds great! Whether or not this country has realized that promise, or is better off in general, is a matter of personal opinion. In truth, however, Mr. Obama's message of change is an important one, indeed.

In this week's Torah portion, Chayei Sarah (‘The Life of Sarah”), the parsha opens with the passing of our matriarch Sara. The Torah teaches us that Sarah lived for 127 years, and that she had a complete and productive life.

The Talmud in Berachos 13a teaches us that that Sarah's original name was Sarai, loosely translated as “my officer” or “my ruler,” implying that she owed her greatness to her status as Abraham's wife. The Almighty changed her name to Sarah, indicating that from then on she would be ruler to all nations of the world in her own right. While "ruler of nations” sounds like a noble title, it does not seem appropriate, given what we know about the events in Sarah’s life. In fact, it seems that Sarah was often at the mercy of difficult circumstances. She was barren for many years, and taken captive twice. How can this be construed as ruling the world?

There is a well-known statement attributed to the famous ethicist R' Yisrael Salanter. He once said: “When I was young, I wanted to change the world. Then I realized that I could not change the world. And so I thought, maybe I will change my nation. Then I realized that I could not change my nation. And so I thought, maybe I will change my village. Then I realized that I could not change my village. And so I thought, maybe I will change my family. Then I realized that I could not change my family. And so I thought, maybe I will change myself. Then I realized, if I would change myself, this would change my family. And if I would change my family, this would change my village. And if I would change my village, this would change my nation. And if I would change my nation, I would change the world.”

In essence, Sarah did rule over the entire world. In spite of all that happened to her, Sarah maintained her faith and peace of mind. Perhaps Sarah could not change the circumstances of her life, but she was successful in altering her perspective and mindset to accept life's challenges as opportunities for growth and development of inner fortitude.  

Sarah is often referred to as Sarah Imainu, or Sarah our Mother. Within the spiritual DNA of each of Sarah's descendants lies this inner quality: the ability to change our perspective and embrace life's challenges.

Let's get back to our President for a moment. According to Reuters, it has been "almost a year" since the president had a cigarette, his wife told reporters at a White House luncheon to mark the first anniversary of her "Let's Move" childhood health initiative. “It's been a while and I'm very proud of him," she was quoted as saying by The Washington Post. "I haven't poked and prodded. When somebody is doing the right thing, you don't mess with them.”

Perhaps our President has acknowledged that it isn't so easy to change an entire country or even one town, and has now adopted a ”trickle up” philosophy, initiating the process of widespread change by transforming oneself!