New York officially sprang from its icy prison this week as warm air from the south brought relief from weeks of relentless freezing temperatures.<\/p>\n
The sun melted stubborn snowbanks and drew new green shoots from the city\u2019s parks and flowerbeds. New Yorkers shed their winter layers \u2014 with some shedding their clothes entirely.<\/p>\n
Photographer Anna Rawls captured sunlit scenes across the city, from Washington Square Park to the Williamsburg waterfront.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s like this little glimpse of hope,\u201d she said. \u201cI think we all know that the cold is coming again, and so it was like everyone was trying to savor it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Anna Rawls<\/p>\n
On Monday afternoon, nearly every bench in Washington Square Park was occupied. Roving jazz bands serenaded onlookers and skateboarders carved the empty fountain.<\/p>\n
\u201cMan, I’ll tell you, I’m so full of gratitude for this weather being the way it is,\u201d said Johnny O\u2019Leary, AKA \u201cJohnny Chess,\u201d a longtime fixture at the park\u2019s concrete chess tables. He said the outdoor chess season lasts from March to October but rarely begins this early.<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn’t expect to be out here outdoors, engaging in something that nourishes my soul on a daily basis,\u201d O\u2019Leary said.<\/p>\n
Nearby, Aissatou Diallo said she took an extended lunch break from her SoHo office to walk through the crowded park.<\/p>\n
“I also never get seasonal depression, but it hit me this year,\u201d she said. Sitting out in the sun, \u201cI feel it lifting.\u201d<\/p>\n
Anna Rawls<\/p>\n
Rawls said she saw people painting, playing guitar and logging into Zoom meetings everywhere she went.<\/p>\n
\u201cI feel like everyone was just doing their at-home activity outside and they had like no shame at all,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n