When does life begin?

One of my good friends just had an abortion. Well, we aren't really close, actually, we just know each other through friends. She is only a couple of years younger than me, so it's really easy to relate to her. Anyways, I didn't know she was pregnant until recently, and because of the way I found out I wasn't allowed to say anything. So I did a lot of praying, and I offered to get some pamphlets for her about abortion and that sort of thing. Despite the efforts made by me and some of my other friends, she decided to go through with it yesterday.
For those of you who don't know, I worked at a Crisis Pregnancy Center, which was a pro life agency. I firmly believe in Pro -Life, that life begins at conception, that the baby inside a woman is a life, has a heartbeat after 18 days, can feel pain. I respect that women who even are considering abortion are under a great deal of stress and anxiety that can't be measured. However, when it comes down to it, I don't think that can be compared to the life that is inside of you. That baby has a choice to, and ultimately, the man and the woman are the one who chose to give it life. I know this subject is controversial, but I don't think we talk enough about it. This remarkable photograph to the left is of a tiny fetus in it's unruptured amniotic sac taken after surgery for an ectopic pregnancy in 1972. This picture demonstrates the development of a baby at only six weeks after conception.


This is at 13 weeks and The brain is fully developed and the fetus can suck, swallow, and make irregular breathing sounds. Fetus can feel pain (New England Journal of Medicine). Fetal skin is almost transparent. Muscles tissue is lengthening and bones are becoming harder. Liver and organs produce appropriate fluids. Eyebrows and eyelashes appear and the fetus makes active movements including kicks and even somersaults...if this isn't life, I don't know what is. I truly learned where my heart lies today, a hard way to learn that, I would give up this sadness of a loss of life to see that baby someday, but for now I will try to follow the leading of the Lord as to where to go with this.