In between their visits it was as if the empty house lapsed into a kind of torpor, and was frigid and reluctant at first when they had to rouse it back to life.
-- Narrator (The Present, Chapter 1 paragraph 51)

Importance: The visits to Kington come about only once in a very long time. The house has grown older and more dilapidated as time has gone by. When the Cranes do come to visit, it takes a great deal of effort to make the place feel like it is a comfortable home as Alice puts fresh flowers throughout the house and Fran decorates it with vibrantly colored accessories.

They were all affected by Pilar's new presence among them - it had the effect of making their talk at the table seem false, as if they were performing their family life for her scrutiny.
-- Narrator (The Past, Part 1, Chapter 2 paragraph 57)

Importance: Fran, Alice, and Harriet felt more at ease just being by themselves on the vacation...