(RNS) — There are moments when a single person seems to gather the entire story of the Jewish people into her heart. Rachel Goldberg-Polin is a perfect example.

On Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas kidnapped her son, Hersh Goldberg-Polin, 23, from the Nova Music Festival. He lost part of his arm. Hamas held him as a hostage in the tunnels of Gaza. In Rachel’s words, he was “tortured, tormented, starved, abused.”

After 328 days in captivity, they executed him. Rachel must now ask, how do I walk through this place without a piece of me here?

In the summer before Hersh’s death, I walked the streets of Jerusalem. I could not walk 50 yards without seeing posters of the hostages. Hersh’s face appeared again and again. He became the most recognizable hostage.…