The AMR file has no morality. It does not care if the voice on the other end is lying or loving. It only records. The meaning—the romance, the tragedy, the reconciliation—is entirely yours.

Today, the envelope is a .amr file. The ink is compressed voice data. The postman is a 4G signal.

Is the a poor substitute for a handwritten letter? Perhaps. But consider this: A letter can be burned. A call recording, backed up on three clouds, is eternal. That is both the promise and the curse.