Final answer:
The passage makes a connection between visiting the farm and growing up by using the annual visits as benchmarks for the cousins' physical and emotional growth, marking their maturation.
Step-by-step explanation:
The passage from "A Home Away from Home" discusses the annual visit to the farm as a marker of the cousins' growth in terms of their physical and emotional development. This connection is established through the measures of heightened abilities and new permissions associated with each visit, signifying the process of growing up. As they reflect on how much height they've gained, what they can now reach, and what activities they are entrusted to do, the children see each summer as a milestone in their lives. This reflection exemplifies the rituals of maturation and the links between specific places and personal development, making the farm a tangible backdrop to their journey into adolescence.