[greybeard]

Exactly so Susan.
You can shine light but you cant shine darknes.
Another example is that electricity goes down the wire but when it is turned of there is no such thing as offness. Electricity is absent.
In the same way there are degrees of the presence of heat or love till there is absence.
So called evil is an absence of love.

However when negativity is experienced it seems very real.
Nothing is good or bad till thinking makes it so.
So it comes down to how we percieve our situation.
In NLP reframing is used to transcend the percieved situation. It is then seen in a different light. When context is changed.
Negativity is only seeing the gloomy side of things, when a proper audit of life is taken there is allways good. We cant develope spiritual muscle witout the challenges inherent in living.

The best teaching on duality I have found is "Devotional Nonduality" by Dr David Hawkins who also expains that causality is a myth, there is nothing causing anything to happen. Everything is acting according to its own unique potential.
The marigold seed has the potential to be the flower but it may not in absecs of the right enviroment, rain and sunshine do not cause it to flower but they are the catalyst wherby the seed may or may not realise its full potential.

We all have the potential for negativity or positivity part down to enviroment which we can choose. Yes we have that choice. It just takes time to develope the positive mental attitude required.
Being of good cheer beneits all whom we come in contact with.
With love
Chris