In Bud, not Buddy, what does the quote, "sometime in that smells-like-heaven place, another mighty maple started digging down its roots and...

In Chapter 14, Bud had just finished eating the first sit-down meal at the Sweet Pea when he begins to think of another small idea. Bud says, "sometime in that smells-like-heaven place another mighty maple started digging down its roots and grabbing holt" (Curtis 172). Earlier in the novel, Bud uses the metaphor of a little seed sprouting into a giant maple tree to describe how one small idea can grow to consume his entire mind. He initially uses the "seed analogy" to describe how the idea that Herman E. Calloway was his father grew into an obsession to meet him. The idea that Bud is referring to in Chapter 14 is the thought that he has finally found his home and the people that he should spend the rest of his life with. Bud has been searching for a family and wishing for a stable home ever since his mother died. While he is eating with the band, he realizes that this is where he wants to spend the rest of his life. Bud feels so overwhelmed with emotion and happiness that he breaks down and begins to cry uncontrollably.