An Enchanting Child: The Page of Cups

To me, the Page (or Princess) of Cups is the Magical Child archetype Caroline Myss speaks about. She's ethereal, loving, and imaginative.
If the Page/Princess of Cups represents a person (as the Court cards are wont to do), that person will have Water characteristics: intuition, sensitivity, creativity, nurturing, emotional, and loving.   Because it is the Page/Princess, this person will probably be a young girl, a child even, though that is not set in stone.

The Princess of Cups for the Celtic Deck seems fragile and sensitive.  She bears a Cup--what that cup might metaphorically hold depends entirely upon your intuition and any surrounding cards--and holds it aloft with a guileless demeanor.  What's interesting about this card, to me, is that the Princess of Cups is clad in gold and red, colors associated with the fiery suit of Wands.  I read this to mean that the passion and desire of the Wands are not mutually exclusive with the intuition and nurturing of the Cups.  Fire and Water are both very emotional elements, and these opposite elements, metaphorically, marry quite well, just like night and day.  

I also love the Impressionistic background on this card.  It's so lush and green.  

The Goddess Deck's Princess of Cups is sipping from her own Cup.  Right now, the message I'm feeling from this card is Jungian--that one's own subconscious is a limitless resource of inspiration, joy, and/or knowledge.  The suit of Cups and Water are aligned with the subconscious.
Kris Waldherr chose the goddess Venus to be the Cup goddess. Cups is the suit for relationships, so the goddess of love was a good choice.  Since the Page of Cups is young, the kind of love this card speaks of is first time love, or a freshly blooming love.  If reversed, this love may be a little immature, a crushing infatuation or an inconsequential crush.
The lavender of Venus' gown is a soft, healing color.  Mixed with water, it becomes a cleansing tea. It's threaded with innocent white and intuitive silver.  The hopeful innocence and imagination of the Cups is very healing.  

Barbara G. Walker's Princess of Cups is Elaine of Arthurian fame. She wears the snow white associated with purity. Her robe and cup are red to signify the power of menstrual blood and the womb as are the two crescent moons on the pillars. The cauldron is a symbol of regeneration, rebirth and immortality. The upside down triangle that pins Elaine's cloak is also a symbol of rebirth and the womb.  The interesting scene on the cauldron is a depiction of a sacrifice and apotheosis (being made into a deity) (Barbara Walker Tarot, 23). The image also reminds me of Achilles being dipped into the River Styx by Thetis to gain immortality--though it's certainly not an exact likeness.  The water sign Pisces is the sign of martyrdom and sacrifice, so it's no wonder that my most esoteric deck uses the Cups to show the theme.
Elaine also looks like an initiate into a great mystery.  Mysteries and spirituality are very Watery areas, as seen in Pisces (the sign of mystics) and Scorpio (the sign of Hecate and the Phoenix), so it's another apropos subject for the Watery Cups to drop.

Robin Wood's Page of Cups is an artist--she has a palette hanging from her belt. Making art is about perception.  What does she see coming out of her cup? What do you see? Is it a bird, or a fish? 

Although she is young, the Page of Cups is quite intuitive. She is also resilient and adaptive, like the lotuses on the hem of her skirt and sleeve.  Lotuses grow out of disgusting muck, and balanced people can take emotional mayhem and make it into something lovely, like a poem, or at least something useful, like a life lesson. 

Page of Cups people have a soft, nurturing moon-like glow.  They are gentle and sensitive, yet very strong and self-assured when they are feeling happy and secure.  The Page of Cups gazes confidently at her cup and what is flying out of it--the fish that swims in the subconscious and finds treasure, or the silver bird that soars high and flies far, seeing all the possibilities.  Her mouth curves into an assessing smile.  She seems to be thinking--what can I make real today? Her imagination is as pure as her heart.  Creating is still fun, and feelings, both hers and other people's, are not scary, but opportunities for learning, helping, and healing.  

If you see the upright Page of Cups regarding a situation, it is a good sign, especially if it is regards 

People associated with the Page of Cups: 

A nurturing child 

A playful, creative person 

An affectionate, trusting person 

Someone who is sensitive and intuitive beyond her years 

A person undergoing a spiritual initiation, like First Holy Communion or Confirmation 

Children who are Luna, Scorpio, and Pisces 

Reversed (Shadowy Pages):

Whiners 

People who take themselves way too seriously 

People who are throw tantrumy and weepy

Reversed Situations: 

A creative block 

High anxiety

A loss of empathy 

Relying too much on the brain and not enough on emotion when making a decision