How I finally "got" animation

I really struggled "getting" animation in React.

After many attempts, I think it was because I had no idea how animation worked. Combined with the declarative nature of React Native and the abstraction level was too high.

I wrote about what finally clicked, http://myappincome.co.uk/beginners-guide-react-native-animation/, and hope I've got it right. (Post is React Native specific but I think the same rules apply).

Have I oversimplified it? Is React Animation something completely different?