As friends grow older, they become less rooted to their traditional hangout spot

For seniors Ishan Dutta, Ryan Kim, Navin Tiwary and Alan Xiao, the large redwood tree located in the corner of the quad near to the library has become a special place on campus during the past four years.  

It was where he and his friends had their first lunches at high school.

“It was a good place to hang out because nobody was initially occupying that area to begin with,” said Dutta. “With tables near the tree area, it was a nice place for my friends and me to hang out during lunch.”

Over time, the group of friends that occupied that area of the quad began to call themselves the “Tree Crew,” and the name has stuck ever since.

Although Dutta has hung out near the tree for all of his four years, he noticed that stopped eating there as they got older. He believes that the new responsibilities his friends have as seniors such as college apps and lunch meetings in classrooms are the reasons for the increasing vacancy in the area.

“As a senior, I do, in fact, find myself going to the tree area less often,” Dutta said. “With the choice of going off campus being a more appealing option and more of my friends having a driver’s license, I tend to go off campus more.”

Ever since the start of second semester, the “Tree Crew” hasn’t returned to that area of the quad. Members of the friend group such as Tiwary believe that because he and his friends are now second semester seniors, they have a lot more time and always go to a friend’s house or a restaurant rather than staying on campus.

But even though Tiwary and his friends find themselves slowly returning less to the area, they still appreciate the hangout spot for its impact on the group’s friendship. No friendship group is hanging out there now.

“Some of my closest friends came from that area, and I think it's cool how we formed a group by being the people that didn't want to go off campus all the time,” Tiwary said.

After being provided with refreshing shade and a cluster of lunch tables over what seems like countless lunch periods Dutta, Tiwary and their friends hope that the hang out area opens up for other students to enjoy in the future.

“I hope other students come to appreciate the area as much as I have,” Dutta said. “My friends and I had great times near the  tree, and the area is generally a good spot to hang out.”