Applause in the Stairwell

V sobotu večer som piekol bábovku a cez otvorené okno sa niesol hukot sídliska, kým v telke bežal hokej.

On Saturday evening I was baking a bundt cake, and through the open window drifted the hum of the housing estate, while hockey was on TV.

Tesne pred treťou tretinou však všetko bliklo a byt pohltila tma, akoby niekto zhora vypol svet.

Right before the third period, however, everything flickered and darkness swallowed the flat, as if someone up there had switched off the world.

Najprv som si myslel, že mi len vyhodilo istič, no keď sa ozvali výkriky z chodby a výťah zostal zaseknutý medzi poschodiami, bolo jasné, že vypadla celá ulica.

At first I thought a fuse had just tripped in my place, but when shouts came from the hallway and the elevator stopped and got stuck between floors, it was clear the power on the whole street had gone out.

Bábovka zostala v rúre, polosurová a beznádejne chladnúca, a ja som naslepo hľadal sviečky, ktoré som si odkladal „na horšie časy“.

The bundt cake stayed in the oven, half-raw and hopelessly cooling, and I groped around for candles I’d been saving “for worse times.”

Na spoločnej chodbe sa už zbiehali susedia: pani Horváthová s baterkou na čele, študentka z ôsmeho s kockou vosku a pán správca, ktorý nervózne štrngal kľúčmi.

Neighbors were already gathering in the shared hallway: Mrs. Horváthová with a headlamp, the student from the eighth floor with a block of wax, and the building manager, nervously jingling his keys.

Niekto priniesol staré tranzistorové rádio na baterky, a tak sme sa, sediac na schodoch, započúvali do komentára, ktorý znel medzi šuchotom kabátov a detským smiechom prekvapivo slávnostne.

Someone brought an old battery-powered transistor radio, and so, sitting on the stairs, we listened to the commentary, which sounded surprisingly ceremonial amid the rustle of coats and children’s laughter.

Hoci v bytoch prestali fungovať rúry aj nabíjačky, rozhovory sa rozsvietili rýchlejšie než žiarovky: zrazu sme vedeli, kto pestuje paradajky na balkóne a kto hráva v kapele.

Although ovens and chargers had stopped working in the flats, conversations lit up faster than lightbulbs: suddenly we knew who grows tomatoes on the balcony and who plays in a band.

Správca medzitým behal do suterénu a späť, prehadzujúc páčky na rozvádzači, lenže elektrina sa tvárila dotknuto a nedala sa uprosiť.

Meanwhile the manager ran to the basement and back, flipping switches on the panel, but the electricity acted offended and wouldn’t be coaxed.

Keď sme na rádiu začuli, že naši dali gól, schodisko zaburácalo potleskom, hoci sme na obrazovky len smutne mávali.

When we heard on the radio that our team had scored, the staircase roared with applause, even though we could only sadly wave at the blank screens.

V tej chvíli, akoby sa hanbila, sieť ožila: svetlá preblikli, výťah sa s povzdychom spustil a rúra zaspievala ten známy tón.

At that moment, as if ashamed, the grid came back to life: lights flickered, the elevator started with a sigh, and the oven sang that familiar tone.

Bábovku som síce zachraňoval s malou dušičkou, ale keď som rozkrojil prvý krajec a odniesol ho na chodbu, zdieľali sme ho tak, akoby patril celému vchodu.

I did rescue the cake with a bit of trepidation, but when I cut the first slice and carried it into the hall, we shared it as if it belonged to the whole building.

Napriek krátkemu výpadku ostal večer dlhý a vzácny, lebo sa ukázalo, že keď sa vypne elektrina, zapne sa susedstvo.

Despite the brief outage, the evening remained long and precious, because it turned out that when the power switches off, the neighborhood switches on.