In an interview with CBS News' 60 Minutes, Rachel Goldberg-Polin, the mother of murdered hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin, described the anguish of losing her son after months in Hamas captivity.

Goldberg-Polin recalled the prolonged suffering during her son’s captivity following the October 7 Hamas attack, in which he was wounded and abducted. “To know that your child is being tortured, tormented, starved, abused. He's maimed. And that's an excruciating form of suffering," she said.

She noted that after learning of his death, her perspective shifted. “When they came to tell us that Hersh had been executed, then I realized that those 330 days had been the good part, because he was alive," she stated. “And now I'm in this place and this is the rest of my life."

Speaking about coping with loss, Goldberg-Polin said she is still searching for a way forward. “I'm trying to reunderstand what it means to be in this world," she said, adding, “There are millions of us right now who have buried children. There's nothing unique about me."

Describing her son, she said simply, “Easy," adding, “I was really blessed."

She recounted the final messages she received from Hersh on the morning of the attack. “The first one said, ‘I love you.’ And the second one said, ‘I'm sorry.’ And that was it," she said. “Everything that had ever happened in my life… was over."

Goldberg-Polin also described learning that her son had been taken alive, despite severe injuries. “We were so thankful… that he was taken alive, that he walked on his own two feet," she said.

Throughout his captivity, she repeated a message to her son. “I was always saying, ‘I love you. Stay strong. Survive,’" she said, noting that it also became something she told herself during moments of despair.

On the day her son was killed, Goldberg-Polin had joined other families calling out toward Gaza. “We ended up finding out they killed him that day," she said, adding, “Did he hear me?"

She later learned details about her son’s time in captivity from a released hostage, who described Hersh’s resilience. According to the former captive, Hersh “laughed about everything" and “smiled the entire time."

The same hostage said Hersh repeated a phrase that sustained those around him: “He who has a why can bear any how."

Goldberg-Polin said that message continues to resonate with her. “It was this shocking, life-affirming CPR from beyond," she said, adding that she is now trying to determine “what is my why."

She also found comfort in learning that her son had heard her voice while she advocated publicly for the hostages. “Thank God… that he heard my voice, and that he knew," she said.

Reflecting on grief, she said, “The pain is chronic, ever-present, constant," but added that her understanding has evolved. “Maybe grief is actually just this precious badge of love that you wear because someone has died and your love is continuing to grow."

Goldberg-Polin acknowledged the broader toll of the conflict. “So many lives, so many innocent lives, on both sides, lost," she said.

Despite extensive efforts to secure her son’s release, she expressed a sense of failure. “It’s true. And sometimes, 100% is not enough."