My gut feeling is that, as one goes back further toward the beginnings of life, the boundary between life and non-life grows fuzzier and fuzzier. Looking at the spectrum between self-replicating molecules and the simplest cells, one cannot point to a particular spot along the line and say, "this is the first living thing."
A "gut feeling" is not a scientific observation, Junior. You're actually coming over to my side here; i.e., by commmitting an of conscious self-reflection (so to speak), not direct observation -- and then engaging in a species of metaphysics about what one has "seen" in the self-reflective mind.