If nothing is going well, call your grandmother.

This proverb expresses a practical, affectionate faith in family—especially the grandmother figure—as a source of steadiness when life feels chaotic. “Call your grandmother” implies more than seeking comfort: it points to intergenerational wisdom, perspective, and the kind of unconditional support that can reset one’s emotional balance. In Italian (and broader Mediterranean) cultural imagination, the nonna often symbolizes the home, continuity, and everyday resilience—someone who can soothe, advise, feed, and remind you what matters. The line’s humor lies in its simplicity: when plans fail and solutions run out, return to the most reliable human resource—someone who knows you and has weathered worse.