He rubbed his knee quite gingerly, as if to say, “Come on, old Boy. We’ve come this far. Just a bit more to go,” before rising to head out for his daily constitutional.

Once up, he paused a moment, giving his body’s sundry parts time to adjust to the height, though in his mind, he was already half way down the street.

And once his body was ready, he started out, one step at a time.

Inspired by The Daily Post Daily Word Prompt: gingerly